Sample records for ir3535-impregnated bed nets

Full Text Available Insecticide-treated nets (ITNs are an integral part of vector control recommendations for malaria elimination in China. This study investigated the extent to which bednets were used and which factors influence bednet use among Jinuo Ethnic Minority in China-Myanmar-Laos border areas.This study combined a quantitative household questionnaire survey and qualitative semi-structured in-depth interviews (SDI. Questionnaires were administered to 352 heads of households. SDIs were given to 20 key informants. The bednet to person ratio was 1∶2.1 (i.e., nearly one net for every two people, however only 169 (48.0% households owned at least one net and 623 (47.2% residents slept under bednets the prior night. The percentages of residents who regularly slept under nets (RSUN and slept under nets the prior night (SUNPN were similar (48.0% vs. 47.2%, P>0.05, however the percentage correct use of nets (CUN was significantly lower (34.5%, P<0.0001. The annual cash income per person (ACIP was an independent factor that influenced bednet use (P<0.0001, where families with an ACIP of CNY10000 or more were much more likely to use nets. House type was strongly associated with bednet use (OR: 4.71, 95% CI: 2.81, 7.91; P<0.0001, where those with traditional wood walls and terracotta roofs were significantly more likely to use nets, and the head of household's knowledge was an independent factor (OR: 5.04, 95% CI: 2.72, 9.35; P<0.0001, where those who knew bednets prevent malaria were significantly more likely to use nets too.High bednet availability does not necessarily mean higher coverage or bednet use. Household income, house type and knowledge of the ability of bednets to prevent malaria are all independent factors that influence bednet use among Jinuo Ethnic Minority.

Full Text Available Abstract Background Although insecticide-treated bednets are effective tools, use often does not follow ownership. House structure and space arrangements may make the attempt to use bednets difficult, especially for school age children. The objectives of this study were to explore whether an individual's sleeping arrangements and house structure affect bednet use in villages along Lake Victoria in western Kenya. Methods Sleeping arrangements of residents were directly observed for use of a bednet, use of a bed, and location. House size, number and types of rooms, bed availability, and residents' ages were estimated. The family heads and mothers were asked about the reason for not using bednets. Individual bednet use was examined against age and sleeping arrangement. Net use at the household level was examined against four variables: bed availability, bednet availability, house size, and number of rooms. Results Bednet use by children between five and 15 years of age was lower than that among the other age classes. However, age was dropped from the final model, and sleeping arrangement was significantly associated with net use. Net use was significantly associated with bed availability, number of rooms and their interaction. Conclusion Net use was affected by sleeping arrangement and availability of suitable locations for hanging nets, in addition to net availability. Most residents had likely not realized that sleeping arrangement was a factor in net use. The ease of hanging a net is particularly important for children.

Despite progress made in the last decades, malaria persists as a pressing health issue in sub-Saharan Africa. Pregnant women are particularly vulnerable to infection and serious health outcomes for themselves and their unborn child. Risk can be mitigated through appropriate use of control measures such as insecticide-treated bednets. Although social networks can influence uptake of preventive strategies, the role of social influence on bednet ownership has not been explored. During an evaluation of a bednet distribution programme, the influence of non-health care advisors on ownership and use of bednets by pregnant women in Kumasi, Ghana was examined. Data were collected through in-person interviews with 300 pregnant women seeking antenatal care in an urban hospital in Kumasi, Ghana. Participants were asked about their bednet ownership, bednet use, and information about three personal contacts that they go to for pregnancy advice. Information about these advisors was combined into an influence score. Logistic regression models were used to determine the association between the score and bednet ownership. Those who owned a bednet were further assessed to determine if interpersonal influence was associated with self-reported sleeping under the bednet the previous night. Of the 294 women in the analysis, 229 (78%) reported owning bednets. Of these bednet owners, 139 (61%) reported using a bednet the previous night. A dose response relationship was observed between the interpersonal influence score and bednet ownership and use. Compared to the lowest influence score, those with the highest influence score (>1 SD above the mean) were marginally more likely to own a bednet [OR = 2.37, 95% CI (0.87, 6.39)] and much more likely to use their bednet [5.38, 95% CI (1.89, 15.25)] after adjusting for other factors. Interpersonal influence appears to have modest impact on ownership and use of bednets by pregnant women in an urban area of Ghana. Further

Full Text Available Abstract Background To combat malaria, the Kenya Ministry of Health and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs have distributed insecticide-treated nets (ITNs for use over beds, with coverage for children under five years of age increasing rapidly. Nevertheless, residents of fishing villages have started to use these bednets for drying fish and fishing in Lake Victoria. This study investigated the extent of bednet misuse in fishing villages. Methods Seven fishing villages along the lake were surveyed to estimate how widely bednets were being used for fishing and drying fish. Villagers were asked why they used the bednets for such purposes. Results In total, 283 bednets were being used for drying fish. Of these, 239 were long-lasting insecticidal bednets (LLIN and 44 were non-long-lasting insecticidal bednets (NLLIN. Further, 72 of the 283 bednets were also being used for fishing. The most popular reasons were because the bednets were inexpensive or free and because fish dried faster on the nets. LLINs were preferred to NLLINs for fishing and drying fish. Conclusion There is considerable misuse of bednets for drying fish and fishing. Many villagers are not yet fully convinced of the effectiveness of LLINs for malaria prevention. Such misuses may hamper the efforts of NGOs and governmental health organizations.

Malaria continues to be an important cause of morbidity and mortality in Madagascar. It has been estimated that the malaria burden costs Madagascar over $52 million annually in terms of treatment costs, lost productivity and prevention expenses. One of the key malaria prevention strategies of the Government of Madagascar consists of large-scale mass distribution campaigns of long-lasting insecticide-treated bednets (LLIN). Although there is ample evidence that child mortality has decreased in Madagascar, it is unclear whether increases in LLIN ownership have contributed to this decline. This study analyses multiple recent cross-sectional survey data sets to examine the association between household bednet ownership and all-cause child mortality. Data on household-level bednet ownership confirm that the percentage of households that own one or more bednets increased substantially following the 2009 and 2010 mass LLIN distribution campaigns. Additionally, all-cause child mortality in Madagascar has declined during the period 2008-2013. Bednet ownership was associated with a 22 % reduction in the all-cause child mortality hazard in Madagascar. Mass bednet distributions contributed strongly to the overall decline in child mortality in Madagascar during the period 2008-2013. However, the decline was not solely attributable to increases in bednet coverage, and nets alone were not able to eliminate most of the child mortality hazard across the island.

One of the control tools to reduce malaria transmission is the use of LLINs. However, several studies show that household bednet use is quite low. A study was developed to better understand the cultural factors that might explain these gaps in Benin. One reason mentioned is that bednets can catch on fire and cause harm. This paper presents a summary of these findings, their analysis and the ensuing issues. This anthropological study is based on an inductive qualitative approach, including 91 semi-structured interviews conducted from July 2011 to March 2012 in a health district in Southern Benin. Fifty-six persons stated that bednets can catch on fire but do not always refer to specific facts. However, 34 of the 56 people narrate specific events they heard or experienced. 39 accounts were geographically located and situated in time, with various details. In 27 situations, people were burned, for which 12 people reportedly died. The disparity between these results and the dearth of bibliographic documentation in the initial search prompted a more in-depth literature review: 16 contributions between 1994 and 2013 were found. Bednet fires were noted in 10 countries, but it is impossible to ascertain the frequency of such events. Moreover, bodily harm can be significant, and several cases of death attributed to bednet fires were noted. Indisputably, the use of bednets to reduce the impact of this terrible disease is an optimal control method. However, the perception that LLINs have a potentially negative effect hinders the use rate in the real world, at least for some. If some people fear the risk of fires, this possibility must be addressed during information and prevention sessions on malaria, with a communication strategy tailored to specific social contexts. Moreover, all possible measures should be taken to limit the harm suffered by individuals and their families.

Full Text Available Abstract Background/Methods Qualitative studies suggest that bednets affect the thermal comfort of users. To understand and reduce this discomfort the effect of bednets on temperature, humidity, and airflow was measured in rural homes in Asia and Africa, as well as in an experimental wind tunnel. Two investigators with architectural training selected 60 houses in The Gambia, Tanzania, Philippines, and Thailand. Data-loggers were used to measure indoor temperatures in hourly intervals over a 12 months period. In a subgroup of 20 houses airflow, temperature and humidity were measured at five-minute intervals for one night from 21.00 to 6.00 hrs inside and outside of bednets using sensors and omni-directional thermo-anemometers. An investigator set up a bednet with a mesh size of 220 holes per inch2 in each study household and slept under the bednet to simulate a realistic environment. The attenuation of airflow caused by bednets of different mesh sizes was also measured in an experimental wind tunnel. Results The highest indoor temperatures (49.0 C were measured in The Gambia. During the hottest months of the year the mean temperature at night (9 pm was between 33.1 C (The Gambia and 26.2 C (Thailand. The bednet attenuated the airflow from a minimum of 27% (Philippines to a maximum of 71% (The Gambia. Overall the bednets reduced airflow compared to un-attenuated airflow from 9 to 4 cm sec-1 or 52% (p -2 reduced airflow by 55% (mean; range 51 - 73%. A denser net (200 holes inch-2 attenuated airflow by 59% (mean; range 56 - 74%. Discussion Despite concerted efforts to increase the uptake of this intervention in many areas uptake remains poor. Bednets reduce airflow, but have no influence on temperature and humidity. The discomfort associated with bednets is likely to be most intolerable during the hottest and most humid period of the year, which frequently coincides with the peak of malaria vector densities and the force

Full Text Available Abstract Background A key to making insecticide-treated nets (ITNs a long-term, sustainable solution to the spread of malaria is understanding what drives their purchase and use. Few studies have analysed the determinants of demand for bednets for malaria prevention at the household level, and in particular, how demand for nets compares with demand for other mosquito prevention methods. Methods This study uses a household survey to assess the determinants of demand for bednets in an area of endemic malaria transmission in rural, southern Mozambique. The study looks at willingness to pay (WTP for bednets, net ownership, usage, and past purchase behaviour, alongside expenditure and frequency of use of alternate methods for malaria prevention. Results While overall net ownership in the sample is low, the evidence fails to suggest that poorer households are less likely to own bednets, when controlling for covariates, nor does the likelihood of receiving a free net depend on socioeconomic status (SES. Formal schooling and market knowledge seem to indicate higher average willingness to pay, while use of alternate methods for malaria prevention, and receipt of Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS are found to decrease demand for bednets. Conclusion For long-term sustainability of ITNs to be realized, results suggest that either full or partial subsidies may be necessary in some contexts to encourage households to obtain and use nets. Given the possible substitution effects of combined malaria control interventions, and the danger of not taking into consideration household preferences for malaria prevention, successful malaria control campaigns should invest a portion of their funds towards educating recipients of IRS and users of other preventive methods on the importance of net use even in the absence of mosquitoes.

Background/Methods Qualitative studies suggest that bednets affect the thermal comfort of users. To understand and reduce this discomfort the effect of bednets on temperature, humidity, and airflow was measured in rural homes in Asia and Africa, as well as in an experimental wind tunnel. Two...... of airflow caused by bednets of different mesh sizes was also measured in an experimental wind tunnel. Results The highest indoor temperatures (49.0 C) were measured in The Gambia. During the hottest months of the year the mean temperature at night (9 pm) was between 33.1 C (The Gambia) and 26.2 C (Thailand...... was detected between the inside and outside of the bednet. Wind tunnel experiments with 11 different mesh-sized bednets showed an overall reduction in airflow of 64% (range 55 - 71%) compared to un-attenuated airflow. As expected, airflow decreased with increasing net mesh size. Nets with a mesh of 136 holes...

Full Text Available Abstract Background Despite the extensive ownership and use of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs over the last decade, the effective lifespan of these nets, especially their physical integrity, under true operational conditions is not well-understood. Usefulness of nets declines primarily due to physical damage or loss of insecticidal activity. Methods A community based cross-sectional survey was used to determine the physical condition and to identify predictors of poor physical condition for bednets owned by individuals from communities in Kwale County, coastal Kenya. A proportionate hole index (pHI was used as a standard measure, and the cut-offs for an ‘effective net’ (offer substantial protection against mosquito bites and ‘ineffective nets’ (offer little or no protection against mosquito bites were determined (pHI ≤88 (about ≤500 cm2 of holes surface area and pHI of >88 (≥500 cm2 of holes surface area, respectively. Results The vast majority (78% of the surveyed nets had some holes. The median pHI was 92 (range: 1–2,980. Overall, half of the nets were categorized as ‘effective nets’ or ‘serviceable nets’. Physical deterioration of nets was associated with higher use and washing frequency. Young children and older children were found to use ineffective bednets significantly more often than infants, while the physical integrity of nets owned by pregnant women was similar to those owned by infants. Estuarine environment inhabitants owned nets with the worst physical condition, while nets owned by the coastal slope inhabitants were in fairly good physical condition. The results suggest that bednets are optimally utilized when they are new and physically intact. Thereafter, bednet utilization decreases gradually with increasing physical deterioration, with most net owners withdrawing physically damaged nets from routine use. This withdrawal commonly happens following 1.5 years of use, making bednet use the most

Challenges persist in ensuring access to and optimal use of long-lasting, insecticidal bednets (LLINs). Factors associated with ownership and use may differ depending on the history of malaria and prevention control efforts in a specific region. Understanding how the cultural and social-environmental context of bednet use may differ between high- and low-risk regions is important when identifying solutions to improve uptake and appropriate use. Community forums and a household, cross-sectional survey were used to collect information on factors related to bednet ownership and use in western Kenya. Sites with disparate levels of transmission were selected, including an endemic lowland area, Miwani, and a highland epidemic-prone area, Kapkangani. Analysis of ownership was stratified by site. A combined site analysis was conducted to examine factors associated with use of all available bednets. Logistic regression modelling was used to determine factors associated with ownership and use of owned bednets. Access to bednets as the leading barrier to their use was identified in community forums and cross-sectional surveys. While disuse of available bednets was discussed in the forums, it was a relatively rare occurrence in both sites. Factors associated with ownership varied by site. Education, perceived risk of malaria and knowledge of individuals who had died of malaria were associated with higher bednet ownership in the highlands, while in the lowlands individuals reporting it was easy to get a bednet were more likely to own one. A combined site analysis indicated that not using an available bednet was associated with the attitudes that taking malaria drugs is easier than using a bednet and that use of a bednet will not prevent malaria. In addition, individuals with an unused bednet in the household were more likely to indicate that bednets are difficult to use, that purchased bednets are better than freely distributed ones, and that bednets should only

Full Text Available D Chidiebere Osuorah,1,2 Chijioke Elias Ezeudu,2 Stanley Kenechi Onah,2 Obinna Tochukwu Anyabolu31Child Survival Unit, Medical Research Council UK, The Gambia Unit, Banjul, The Gambia; 2Department of Pediatrics, Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, Anambra, Nigeria; 3School of Health and Social Care, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, UKBackground: Malaria remains the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in sub-Saharan Africa, with children under 5 years accounting for 86% of all malaria deaths. For effective control of malaria, WHO recommends rapid diagnosis and effective treatment, insecticide-treated bednets, and indoor residual spraying. The use of insecticide-treated bednets has been shown to be the most cost-effective strategy in preventing this infection. However, despite the Roll Back Malaria subsidized and free bednet distribution initiatives in some Africa countries, bednet uptake and usage still remains low in many households.Aim: This study aimed to investigate household characteristics and child factors that determine bednet ownership and use amongst under-5 children and the effect of its usage on malaria parasitemia in under-5 children in Nigeria.Methods: Data from a nationally representative sample of 5895 households was obtained from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory in the 2010 Nigeria demographic and health survey, with a minimum of 67 households enrolled per state. Appropriate statistical tools were used to identify the characteristics of households that owned a bednet and to examine the association between the households and child-level factors that predict the use of bednet and malaria prevalence among under-5 children within these households.Results: The rate of households bednet ownership in Nigeria is about 45.5%. About 48.5% of under-5 children in 33.9% of households surveyed, use a bednet during sleep. There was a strong correlation between households ownership and child

Full Text Available Abstract Background Tanzania has a well-developed network of commercial ITN retailers. In 2004, the government introduced a voucher subsidy for pregnant women and, in mid 2005, helped distribute free nets to under-fives in small number of districts, including Rufiji on the southern coast, during a child health campaign. Contributions of these multiple insecticide-treated net delivery strategies existing at the same time and place to coverage in a poor rural community were assessed. Methods Cross-sectional household survey in 6,331 members of randomly selected 1,752 households of 31 rural villages of Demographic Surveillance System in Rufiji district, Southern Tanzania was conducted in 2006. A questionnaire was administered to every consenting respondent about net use, treatment status and delivery mechanism. Findings Net use was 62.7% overall, 87.2% amongst infants (0 to1 year, 81.8% amongst young children (>1 to 5 years, 54.5% amongst older children (6 to 15 years and 59.6% amongst adults (>15 years. 30.2% of all nets had been treated six months prior to interview. The biggest source of nets used by infants was purchase from the private sector with a voucher subsidy (41.8%. Half of nets used by young children (50.0% and over a third of those used by older children (37.2% were obtained free of charge through the vaccination campaign. The largest source of nets amongst the population overall was commercial purchase (45.1% use and was the primary means for protecting adults (60.2% use. All delivery mechanisms, especially sale of nets at full market price, under-served the poorest but no difference in equity was observed between voucher-subsidized and freely distributed nets. Conclusion All three delivery strategies enabled a poor rural community to achieve net coverage high enough to yield both personal and community level protection for the entire population. Each of them reached their relevant target group and free nets only temporarily

Background Bursting strength is a standard method for evaluating mosquito net strength. This article suggests that tension strength with one grab and one hook better represent how holes are generated in bednets in real life. Methods Measurements of bursting strength and tension strengths in the two directions are analysed for eight model nets created for the study. The nets were made in the most commonly used denier (75 and 100 D) and mesh (156 holes/inch2) for multifilament polyester yarns, texturized or not, and with 4 or 6 sided holes. All were made from one polyester quality. Data was arranged in a randomized, complete block design and analysed for significant variables and their interactions. Data was then subjected to regression analyses using net square metre weight as a weighting factor with stepwise removal of variables. This revealed how the four textile variables interacted and allowed for making predictions for the strength of commercial nets in polyester or polyethylene. Results For the model nets, higher denier provided higher bursting strength and tension strengths, texturizing weakened nets and four-sided holes were stronger than six-sided holes. Even when compensating for square metre weight, 100 D nets are stronger than 75 D nets. Results for the commercial polyester netnets are less clear, probably because of different qualities of polyester. Tensile strength: a 75 denier net knitted tightly to provide the same square metre weight as a standard 100 denier net therefore does not obtain the same strength. Polyethylene nets are made of mono-fibre yarns and, therefore, have higher tension strength in both directions than multifilament polyester nets. For bursting strength results overlap for 100 denier yarns of both yarn types. As a class, commercial polyethylene nets are stronger than commercial polyester net whatever method is used for evaluation. Conclusion Tension strength measured in the length and width directions of the net using one hook

Insecticide treated nets (ITNs) are a potential tool to help control sand flies and prevent Leishmaniasis. However, little is currently known about the response of Leishmania infected sand flies to ITNs. In this study, Phlebotomus duboscqi sand flies were infected with the parasite Leishmania major. Infected and noninfected sand flies were then evaluated against permethrin treated and untreated bednets in a laboratory assay that required sand flies to pass through suspended netting material to feed on a mouse serving as an attractive host. The number of sand flies passing through the nets and blood feeding was recorded. There was not a significant difference in the ability of infected or noninfected sand flies to move through treated or untreated nets. Fewer sand flies entered the permethrin treated nets compared to the untreated nets, indicating that permethrin creates an effective barrier. The results show that in addition to reducing the nuisance bites of noninfected sand flies, ITNs also protect against Leishmania infected sand flies and therefore can play in key role in reducing the rates of Leishmaniasis. This study is important to the Department of Defense as it continues to develop and field new bednets to protect service members.

Full Text Available Abstract Background Use of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs continues to offer potential strategy for malaria prevention in endemic areas. However their effectiveness, sustainability and massive scale up remain a factor of socio-economic and cultural variables of the local community which are indispensable during design and implementation stages. Methods An ethnographic household survey was conducted in four study villages which were purposefully selected to represent socio-economic and geographical diversity. In total, 400 households were randomly selected from the four study villages. Quantitative and qualitative information of the respondents were collected by use of semi-structured questionnaires and focus group discussions. Results Malaria was reported the most frequently occurring disease in the area (93% and its aetiology was attributed to other non-biomedical causes like stagnant water (16%, and long rains (13%. Factors which significantly caused variation in bednet use were occupant relationship to household head (χ2 = 105.705; df 14; P = 0.000, Age (χ2 = 74.483; df 14; P = 0.000, village (χ2 = 150.325; df 6; P = 0.000, occupation (χ2 = 7.955; df 3; P = 0.047, gender (χ2 = 4.254; df 1; P = 0.039 and education levels of the household head or spouse (χ2 = 33.622; df 6; P = 0.000. The same variables determined access and conditions of bednets at household level. Protection against mosquito bite (95% was the main reason cited for using bednets in most households while protection against malaria came second (54%. Colour, shape and affordability were some of the key potential factors which determined choice, use and acceptance of bednets in the study area. Conclusion The study highlights potential social and economic variables important for effective and sustainable implementation of bednets-related programmes in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Background Insecticide-treated bednets (ITNs), used extensively to reduce human exposure to malaria, work through physical and chemical means to block or deter host-seeking mosquitoes. Despite the importance of ITNs, very little is known about how host-seeking mosquitoes behave around occupied bednets. As a result, evidence-based evaluations of the effects of physical damage on bednet effectiveness are not possible and there is a dearth of knowledge on which to base ITN design. Methods The dispersion of colony-raised female Anopheles gambiae and Anopheles albimanus was observed in 2-hr laboratory experiments in which up to 200 mosquitoes were released inside a mosquito-proof 3 m × 3 m tent housing a bednet arrayed with 18 30 cm × 30 cm sticky screen squares on the sides, ends and roof. Numbers of mosquitoes caught on the sticky squares were interpreted as the ‘mosquito pressure’ on that part of the net. Results Presence of a human subject in the bednet significantly increased total mosquito pressure on the net for both species and significantly re-oriented An. gambiae to the roof of the net. Anopheles albimanus pressure was greatest on the bednet roof in both host-present and no-host conditions. The effects of different human subjects in the bednet, of different ambient conditions (dry, cool conditions vs warm, humid conditions) and of bednet treatment (deltamethrin-treated or no insecticide) on mosquito pressure patterns were tested for both species. Species-specific pressure patterns did not vary greatly as a result of any of these factors though some differences were noted that may be due the size of the different human subjects. Conclusions As a result of the interaction between host-seeking responses and the convective plume from the net occupant, species-specific mosquito pressure patterns manifest more or less predictably on the bednet. This has implications for bednet design and suggests that current methods of assessing damaged

Between 1991 and 1994, an intervention program with permethrin- and lambdacyhalothrin-impregnated bednets was carried out over a period of nine months in each of five endemic, malarious areas of Ecuador, Peru, and Colombia. This program was evaluated through household surveys, blood sampling, in-depth longitudinal studies, and entomologic analysis. Eighty-four communities (including approximately 35,000 individuals) were paired according to malaria incidence, size, and coverage with bednets and then randomly allocated to intervention and control groups. The results showed that peoples' acceptance of the measure was related to their perception of an immediate protective effect against insects. The effectiveness of the bednets, measured as a reduction of malaria incidence in intervention communities as against control communities, showed large variations between and within the study areas. The protective efficacy varied between 0% and 70% when looking only at the postintervention differences between intervention and control groups. The average protection was 40.8% when considering a four-month incidence of clinical malaria attacks and 28.3% when considering a two-week malaria incidence. Important factors for the success of the bednet program were insect susceptibility to pyrethroids, high coverage with impregnated bednets, high malaria incidence, good community participation, high mosquito densities when people go to bed, and a high proportion of Plasmodium falciparum. In one area, where DDT spraying in the control communities was executed, the effectiveness of bednet impregnation was slightly better than that of spraying.

Full Text Available Abstract Background Besides significantly reducing malaria vector densities, prolonged usage of bednets has been linked to decline of Anopheles gambiae s.s. relative to Anopheles arabiensis, changes in host feeding preference of malaria vectors, and behavioural shifts to exophagy (outdoor biting for the two important malaria vectors in Africa, An. gambiae s.l. and Anopheles funestus. In southern coastal Kenya, bednet use was negligible in 1997-1998 when Anopheles funestus and An. gambiae s.s. were the primary malaria vectors, with An. arabiensis and Anopheles merus playing a secondary role. Since 2001, bednet use has increased progressively and reached high levels by 2009-2010 with corresponding decline in malaria transmission. Methods To evaluate the impact of the substantial increase in household bednet use within this area on vector density, vector composition, and human-vector contact, indoor and outdoor resting mosquitoes were collected in the same region during 2009-2010 using pyrethrum spray catches and clay pots for indoor and outdoor collections respectively. Information on bednet use per sleeping spaces and factors influencing mosquito density were determined in the same houses using Poisson regression analysis. Species distribution was determined, and number of mosquitoes per house, human-biting rates (HBR, and entomological inoculation rate (EIR were compared to those reported for the same area during 1997-1998, when bednet coverage had been minimal. Results Compared to 1997-1998, a significant decline in the relative proportion of An. gambiae s.s. among collected mosquitoes was noted, coupled with a proportionate increase of An. arabiensis. Following > 5 years of 60-86% coverage with bednets, the density, human biting rate and EIR of indoor resting mosquitoes were reduced by more than 92% for An. funestus and by 75% for An. gambiae s.l. In addition, the host feeding choice of both vectors shifted more toward non

Besides significantly reducing malaria vector densities, prolonged usage of bednets has been linked to decline of Anopheles gambiae s.s. relative to Anopheles arabiensis, changes in host feeding preference of malaria vectors, and behavioural shifts to exophagy (outdoor biting) for the two important malaria vectors in Africa, An. gambiae s.l. and Anopheles funestus. In southern coastal Kenya, bednet use was negligible in 1997-1998 when Anopheles funestus and An. gambiae s.s. were the primary malaria vectors, with An. arabiensis and Anopheles merus playing a secondary role. Since 2001, bednet use has increased progressively and reached high levels by 2009-2010 with corresponding decline in malaria transmission. To evaluate the impact of the substantial increase in household bednet use within this area on vector density, vector composition, and human-vector contact, indoor and outdoor resting mosquitoes were collected in the same region during 2009-2010 using pyrethrum spray catches and clay pots for indoor and outdoor collections respectively. Information on bednet use per sleeping spaces and factors influencing mosquito density were determined in the same houses using Poisson regression analysis. Species distribution was determined, and number of mosquitoes per house, human-biting rates (HBR), and entomological inoculation rate (EIR) were compared to those reported for the same area during 1997-1998, when bednet coverage had been minimal. Compared to 1997-1998, a significant decline in the relative proportion of An. gambiae s.s. among collected mosquitoes was noted, coupled with a proportionate increase of An. arabiensis. Following > 5 years of 60-86% coverage with bednets, the density, human biting rate and EIR of indoor resting mosquitoes were reduced by more than 92% for An. funestus and by 75% for An. gambiae s.l. In addition, the host feeding choice of both vectors shifted more toward non-human vertebrates. Besides bednet use, malaria vector abundance

Full Text Available Abstract Insecticide-treated bednets are the preeminent malaria control means; though there is no consensus as to a best practice for large-scale insecticide-treated bednet distribution. In order to determine the paramount distribution method, this review assessed literature on recent insecticide treated bednet distribution programmes throughout sub-Saharan Eastern Africa. Inclusion criteria were that the study had taken place in sub-Saharan Eastern Africa, targeted malaria prevention and control, and occurred between 1996 and 2007. Forty-two studies were identified and reviewed. The results indicate that distribution frameworks varied greatly; and consequently so did outcomes of insecticide-treated bednet use. Studies revealed consistent inequities between urban and rural populations; which were most effectively alleviated through a free insecticide-treated bednet delivery and distribution framework. However, cost sharing through subsidies was shown to increase programme sustainability, which may lead to more long-term coverage. Thus, distribution should employ a catch up/keep up programme strategy. The catch-up programme rapidly scales up coverage, while the keep-up programme maintains coverage levels. Future directions for malaria should include progress toward distribution of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets.

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Inexpensive and efficacious interventions that avert childhood deaths in sub-Saharan Africa have failed to reach effective coverage, especially among the poorest rural sectors. One particular example is insecticide-treated bednets (ITNs. In this study, we present repeat observations of ITN coverage among rural Kenyan homesteads exposed at different times to a range of delivery models, and assess changes in coverage across socioeconomic groups. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We undertook a study of annual changes in ITN coverage among a cohort of 3,700 children aged 0-4 y in four districts of Kenya (Bondo, Greater Kisii, Kwale, and Makueni annually between 2004 and 2006. Cross-sectional surveys of ITN coverage were undertaken coincidentally with the incremental availability of commercial sector nets (2004, the introduction of heavily subsidized nets through clinics (2005, and the introduction of free mass distributed ITNs (2006. The changing prevalence of ITN coverage was examined with special reference to the degree of equity in each delivery approach. ITN coverage was only 7.1% in 2004 when the predominant source of nets was the commercial retail sector. By the end of 2005, following the expansion of heavily subsidized clinic distribution system, ITN coverage rose to 23.5%. In 2006 a large-scale mass distribution of ITNs was mounted providing nets free of charge to children, resulting in a dramatic increase in ITN coverage to 67.3%. With each subsequent survey socioeconomic inequity in net coverage sequentially decreased: 2004 (most poor [2.9%] versus least poor [15.6%]; concentration index 0.281; 2005 (most poor [17.5%] versus least poor [37.9%]; concentration index 0.131, and 2006 with near-perfect equality (most poor [66.3%] versus least poor [66.6%]; concentration index 0.000. The free mass distribution method achieved highest coverage among the poorest children, the highly subsidised clinic nets programme was marginally in favour of

The impact of untreated bednets on the transmission of human malaria and filariasis in a village in a hyperendemic area of Papua New Guinea was studied. In anopheline mosquitoes, the Plasmodium falciparum sporozoite antigen positivity rate, filarial infection rates and human blood indices dropped significantly after bednets were introduced. This reduction in human-vector contact did not affect mosquito density as no significant difference in either landing rates or indoor resting catches was found. The number of bednets in a house and ownership of dogs were factors significantly associated with a reduction in the number of indoor resting mosquitoes. However, the reduction in the P. falciparum sporozoite antigen rate in mosquitoes was not accompanied by a reduction in either malaria parasite or antibody prevalences or titres against the P. falciparum circumsporozoite protein.

Full Text Available A field trial was carried out in the Chabahar District of Sistan and Baluchistan Province, southeastern Iran on the efficacy of mosquito nets treated with a suspension formulation of deltamethrin (K-O THRIN® against malaria vectors. Treated nets were used in three villages, and in the two control villages, one used untreated nets and the other used indoor spraying with deltamethrin (WP 10%, without nets. Treatment of polyester mosquito net with a target dose of 25 mg/m2 active ingredi¬ent, carried out in mid-April 2005. Bioassays repeated on domestically used nets over 7 months showed persistence of al¬most 100% mortality of Anopheles. stephensi over this period. Adult mosquitoes were collected by pyrethroid space spray catch of living quarters and stables, cattle bait and pit shelter catches. Overall, An. culicifacies Giles s.l predominated (49.8%, followed by An. stephensi Liston s.l.(36.9%, An. pulcherrimus Theobald (7.3 %, An. dthali Patton (5.7% and An. fluviatilis James (0.3%. Acknowledge, Attitude and Practice (KAP study showed that about 97% of respondents in communities agreed that they would like to participate in malaria control activities such as personal protection using im¬pregnation bednet. Therefore, in planning for future large scale trials, comparison of new compounds and formulations such as tablets and long lasting insecticides impregnated bednet is recommended.

Full Text Available A field trial was carried out in the Chabahar District of Sistan and Baluchistan Province, southeastern Iran on the efficacy of mosquito nets treated with a suspension formulation of deltamethrin (K-O THRIN® against malaria vectors. Treated nets were used in three villages, and in the two control villages, one used untreated nets and the other used indoor spraying with deltamethrin (WP 10%, without nets. Treatment of polyester mosquito net with a target dose of 25 mg/m2 active ingredi¬ent, carried out in mid-April 2005. Bioassays repeated on domestically used nets over 7 months showed persistence of al¬most 100% mortality of Anopheles. stephensi over this period. Adult mosquitoes were collected by pyrethroid space spray catch of living quarters and stables, cattle bait and pit shelter catches. Overall, An. culicifacies Giles s.l predominated (49.8%, followed by An. stephensi Liston s.l.(36.9%, An. pulcherrimus Theobald (7.3 %, An. dthali Patton (5.7% and An. fluviatilis James (0.3%. Acknowledge, Attitude and Practice (KAP study showed that about 97% of respondents in communities agreed that they would like to participate in malaria control activities such as personal protection using im¬pregnation bednet. Therefore, in planning for future large scale trials, comparison of new compounds and formulations such as tablets and long lasting insecticides impregnated bednet is recommended.

Full Text Available Abstract Background Insecticide-treated bednets (ITNs, including long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs, play a primary role in global campaigns to roll back malaria in tropical Africa. Effectiveness of treated nets depends on direct impacts on individual mosquitoes including killing and excite-repellency, which vary considerably among vector species due to variations in host-seeking behaviours. While monitoring and evaluation programmes of ITNs have focuses on morbidity and all-cause mortality in humans, local entomological context receives little attention. Without knowing the dynamics of local vector species and their responses to treated nets, it is difficult to predict clinical outcomes when ITN applications are scaled up across African continent. Sound model frameworks incorporating intricate interactions between mosquitoes and treated nets are needed to develop the predictive capacity for scale-up applications of ITNs. Methods An established agent-based model was extended to incorporate the direct outcomes, e.g. killing and avoidance, of individual mosquitoes exposing to ITNs in a hypothetical village setting with 50 houses and 90 aquatic habitats. Individual mosquitoes were tracked throughout the life cycle across the landscape. Four levels of coverage, i.e. 40, 60, 80 and 100%, were applied at the household level with treated houses having only one bednet. By using Latin hypercube sampling scheme, parameters governing killing, diverting and personal protection of net users were evaluated for their relative roles in containing mosquito populations, entomological inoculation rates (EIRs and malaria incidence. Results There were substantial gaps in coverage between households and individual persons, and 100% household coverage resulted in circa 50% coverage of the population. The results show that applications of ITNs could give rise to varying impacts on population-level metrics depending on values of parameters governing interactions of

Full Text Available Abstract Background There is no clear consensus on the most sustainable and effective distribution strategy for insecticide treated bednets (ITNs. Tanzania has been a leader in social marketing but it is still not clear if this can result in high and equitable levels of coverage. Methods A cluster-randomized survey of ITN and bednet ownership and use was conducted in a rural area exposed to intense Plasmodium falciparum transmission in NE Tanzania where ITN distribution had been subject to routine delivery of national strategies and episodic free distribution through local clinics. Data were collected on household assets to assess equity of ITN coverage and a rapid diagnostic test for malaria (RDT was performed in all ages. Results Among 598 households in four villages the use of any or insecticidal bednets in children less than five years of age was 71% and 54% respectively. However there was a 19.8% increase in the number of bednets per person (p Conclusion Marked inequity persists with the poorest households still experiencing the highest risk of malaria and the lowest ITN coverage. Abolition of this inequity within the foreseeable future is likely to require mass or targeted free distribution, but risks damaging what is otherwise an effective commercial market.

Full Text Available Abstract Background A huge discrepancy was reported between ownership versus utilization of insecticide-treated bednets (ITNs. To acquire the benefits of ITNs, households need to use and not merely own them. The objective of this study was to characterize the pattern of, and assess factors related to ITN use in one village in south Ethiopia. Methods A prospective cohort study involving 8,121 residents (in 1,388 households was carried out from April 2009 to April 2011 (101 weeks. Every week, individuals were asked whether they slept under an ITN the night before the interview. Descriptive statistics was used to report the availability and use of ITN. A negative, binomial, probability, distribution model was fitted to find out significant predictors of ITN use. Reasons for not using ITN were summarized. Results The total number of ITNs available at the beginning of the study was 1,631 (1.68 ITNs per household. On week 48, 3,099 new ITNs (PermaNet2.0 were distributed freely (2.3 ITNs per household. The number of households who received at least one new ITN was 1,309 (98.4%. The percentage of children Conclusions The ITN use fraction reached to a maximum of 69% despite near universal coverage (98.4% was achieved. Gender, age differences and distance from vector breeding site were associated with ITN use. Strategies may need to be designed addressing disproportions in ITN use, lack of convenient space to hang more than one ITN (for those receiving more than one, and measures to prolong usable life of ITNs.

Full Text Available Abstract Background To describe malaria knowledge, attitudes toward malaria and bednet use, levels of ownership and use of bednets, and factors associated with ownership and use among pregnant women attending their first antenatal care (ANC visit in Kinshasa, DRC. Methods Women attending their first ANC visit at one maternity in Kinshasa were recruited to take part in a study where they were given free insecticide treated bednets (ITNs and then followed up at delivery and 6 months post delivery to assess ITN use. This study describes the baseline levels of bednet ownership and use, attitudes towards net use and factors associated with net use Results Among 351 women interviewed at baseline, 115 (33% already owned a bednet and 86 (25% reported to have slept under the net the previous night. Cost was reported as the reason for not owning a net by 48% of the 236 women who did not own one. In multivariable analyses, women who had secondary school or higher education were 3.4 times more likely to own a net (95% CI 1.6–7.3 and 2.8 times more likely to have used a net (95% CI 1.3–6.0 compared to women with less education Conclusion Distribution of ITNs in antenatal clinics in this setting is needed and feasible. The potential for ITN use by this target population is high.

Full Text Available A study was conducted to evaluate the impact of washing on the decrease in the effectiveness of the Long Lasting Impregnated BedNet = IBN (deltamethrin at a dosage of 55 mg/m2 on polyester 100%. The study was conducted by bioassay test on a sample 20 x 20 cm2 (untreated mosquito net, in the laboratory of the IBN (deltamethin and a control bednet (20 x 20 cm2; using malaria vectors Anophelesmaculatus and Anopheles aconitus. The bioassay test was conducted every day (4 replicates with 10-15 mosquitoes/cone. The test was conducted until a mortality of 70% was reached. The exposure time was 3 minutes (recording knockdown mosquitoes, holding for 24 hours and counting the dead mosquitoes after 24 hours. Before the next bioassay test, the bednet sample was washed 3 times using 3 gram solid/hardsoap, and shaken on a shaker. Results show that the residual effect of the IBN decrease slowly after washing which has lost its effectiveness after 45 washings (Mortality< 70%.

This article provides an empirical multi-disciplinary strategy that enables to identify prevalence-elastic behaviours influencing the possession of mosquito nets and to assess the relative performance of health centers in promoting the possession of nets in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). We use a household survey conducted in 2009 in Haut Katanga, DRC. We combine these data with estimates on malaria prevalence from the Malaria Atlas project. Results show that households behave rationally with respect to the disease, meaning that the cause for a low possession of nets should be found elsewhere. They also show that health centers are not the most effective in promoting possession of bednets, in areas where they are most needed for malaria control.

To determine the efficacy of chlorfenapyr against Anopheles arabiensis and Culex quinquefasciatus in East Africa and to identify effective dosages for net treatment in comparison with the commonly used pyrethroid deltamethrin. Chlorfenapyr was evaluated on bednets in experimental huts against A. arabiensis and C. quinquefasciatus in Northern Tanzania, at application rates of 100-500 mg/m(2). In experimental huts, mortality rates in A. arabiensis were high (46.0-63.9%) for all dosages of chlorfenapyr and were similar to that of deltamethrin-treated nets. Mortality rates in C. quinquefasciatus were higher for chlorfenapyr than for deltamethrin. Despite a reputation for being slow acting, >90% of insecticide-induced mortality in laboratory tunnel tests and experimental huts occurred within 24 h, and the speed of killing was no slower than for deltamethrin-treated nets. Chlorfenapyr induced low irritability and knockdown, which explains the relatively small reduction in blood-feeding rate. Combining chlorfenapyr with a more excito-repellent pyrethroid on bednets for improved personal protection, control of pyrethroid-resistant mosquitoes and pyrethroid resistance management would be advantageous.

Universal coverage campaigns for long-lasting insecticide-treated nets do not always reach the goal of one net for every two household members, and even when ownership of at least one net per household is high, many households may not own enough nets. The retail market provides these households options for replacing or increasing the number of nets they own with products that best fit their needs since a variety of net shapes, sizes, and colours are available. Hence, it is important to understand the factors affecting private net demand. This study explores private demand for nets in Tanzania using a discrete choice experiment. The experiment provides participants the option to buy nets with their own money, and thus should prove more accurate than a hypothetical survey of net preferences. Nearly 800 participants sampled in two regions showed an overall strong demand for nets, with 40% choosing to buy a net across all seven combinations of net prices and characteristics such as size, shape, and insecticide treatment. Only 8% of all participants chose not to buy a single net. A key factor influencing demand was whether a participant's household currently owned sufficient nets for all members, with rural participants showing lower net coverage and greater demand than urban participants. Both poor and less poor households showed strong evidence of making purchase decisions based on more than price alone. Mean willingness-to-pay values for a net started at US$1.10 and grew by US$0.50-1.40 for various attributes such as rectangular shape, large size, and insecticide treatment. The impact of price on demand was negative but small, with elasticity values between -0.25 and -0.45. The results suggest that private demand for nets in Tanzania could potentially supplement future coverage campaigns. Net manufacturers and retailers should advertise and promote consumers' preferred net attributes to improve sales and further expand net access and coverage. To overcome household

Full Text Available Abstract Background Insecticide treated materials remain the mainstay for malaria prevention. The current study reports on the entomological impact of cyfluthrin impregnated bednets on malaria transmission in Mbandjock, a semi urban locality in southern Cameroon. Several findings pertaining to the recent distribution of LLINs across Cameroon are discussed. Methods Malaria transmission and vector bionomics were monitored before and after impregnated net coverage. Bednets were distributed in Mbandjock, whereas the locality of Nkoteng was free of bednets during the entire study period. January to June 1997 represented the period before bednet coverage and September 1997 to September 1998 was the period after bednet coverage. Adult mosquitoes were collected by human landing catches. Mosquito genus and species were identified with morphological and molecular diagnostic tools. Anopheline salivary glands and ovaries were dissected to determine female infectious status and parity rates respectively. Results A total of 6959 anophelines corresponding to 6029 in Mbandjock and 930 in Nkoteng were collected in the course of the study. Seven species were recorded in both cities : Anopheles coustani, An. funestus, An. gambiae sl, An. moucheti, An. ziemanni, An. nili and An. paludis. An. gambiae s.l. (>95% An. gambiae S molecular form was the most abundant species representing 75.6% and 86.6% of the total anophelines caught in Mbandjock before and after bednet coverage respectively. The human biting rate (HBR in Mbandjock decreased from 17 bites/human/night before bednet coverage to less than 4 bites/human/night during the first 7 months following impregnated bednet coverage. A significant decrease of mosquito parity rate was recorded when comparing the period before (52% and after (46.5% bednet distribution. The average infection rate of malaria vectors significantly decreased from 5.3% before to 1.8% after bednet coverage (p Conclusion The study

Insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) reduce malaria transmission and related morbidity and child mortality; however, incorrect and inconsistent use limits their protective factors. This community trial titled the Net Use Intervention study sought to bridge the gap between ITN ownership and use in southern (coastal) Ghana and to determine the best mix of communication tools to affect behavior of ITN owners to consistent use while maintaining optimal internal and external validity. This two-group, non-randomized experiment evaluated a multichannel, multisector intervention process over the course of 8 weeks. A longitudinal cohort was scientifically sampled from six intervention and six control communities for both baseline and posttest surveys. The posttest survey showed no change in knowledge of ITNs in the intervention or control. In terms of use the previous night, there was a strong and statistically significant intervention effect (OR = 1.67; p promotion efforts succeeded well beyond the planners' expectations, not only promoting usage but also dramatically increasing demand for new ITNs.

Insecticide-treated nets are currently a major tool to reduce malaria transmission. Their level of repellency affects contact of the mosquito with the net, but may also influence the mosquito's entry into the house. The response of host-seeking malaria mosquitoes approaching the eave of an

Objective: To ascertain the socio-cultural factors influencing the rate of utilization of insecticide treated bednets (ITNs) in a malaria endemic city of Makurdi, north central Nigeria. Methods:The study was cross-sectional in nature using systematic sampling method to identify households. Both quantitative and qualitative data was generated from adult women using structured and semi structured questionnaires, and focused group discussions (FGDs) to obtain information on rate and patterns of utilization of ITNs. Information such as age, educational level, marital status, awareness or otherwise of the existence of malaria, and factors influencing rate of ownership and utilization of ITNs were obtained. FGDs were used to obtain qualitative information on rate of utilization of ITNs not captured in the questionnaires. Data obtained was analysed using Epi Info 6 statistical software. Results: Among the respondents interviewed, 97.0%(2 013/2 075) were aware of existence of malaria and 87.0%of these (1 751/2 013) would associate it with mosquitoes. The rate of ownership of any bednet, ITNs and untreated bednets (UTNs) was 25.1%, 17.0%and 8.3%, respectively. Utilization of ITNs among children was 30.0%(112/373) and UTNs 12.9%(48/373). Positive contributors to ITNs utilization were literacy, enhanced economy, experience of marriage, and being gainfully employed (P<0.05);while negative contributors were ignorance, poverty and some cultural beliefs and values. Conclusions: A more synchronized advocacy should be carried out on the potential benefits of ITNs utilization and sustained. Also ITNs should be made available to the people of the community at minimal or no cost.

Background Relatively few programmes have attempted to actively engage the private sector in national malaria control efforts. This paper evaluates the health impact of a large-scale distribution of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) conducted in partnership with a Zambian agribusiness, and its cost-effectiveness from the perspective of the National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP). Methods The study was designed as a cluster-randomized controlled trial. A list of 81,597 cotton farmers was obtained from Dunavant, a contract farming company in Zambia’s cotton sector, in December 2010. 39,963 (49%) were randomly selected to obtain one ITN each. Follow-up interviews were conducted with 438 farmers in the treatment and 458 farmers in the control group in June and July 2011. Treatment and control households were compared with respect to bednet ownership, bednet usage, self-reported fever, and self-reported confirmed malaria. Cost data was collected throughout the programme. Results The distribution effectively reached target beneficiaries, with approximately 95% of households in the treatment group reporting that they had received an ITN through the programme. The average increase in the fraction of household members sleeping under an ITN the night prior to the interview was 14.6 percentage points (p-value <0.001). Treatment was associated with a 42 percent reduction in the odds of self-reported fever (p-value <0.001) and with a 49 percent reduction in the odds of self-reported malaria (p-value 0.002). This was accomplished at a cost of approximately five US$ per ITN to Zambia’s NMCP. Conclusions The results illustrate that existing private sector networks can efficiently control malaria in remote rural regions. The intra-household allocation of ITNs distributed through this channel was comparable to that of ITNs received from other sources, and the health impact remained substantial. PMID:23506170

Full Text Available Background. Malaria remains a major cause of mortality and morbidity in the world, and particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. Objectives. The aim of this study was to determine ownership and utilization of ITNs among households with children under five in the previous night. Methods. A community based cross-sectional study was conducted in Gursum district in Eastern Ethiopia. A total of 335 households were surveyed using a pretested structured questionnaire administered though house-to-house interviews. Results. Household ownership for at least one mosquito net and use of nets were 62.4% (95% CI 57.2–67.6% and 21.5% (95% CI 17.1–25.9%, respectively. Households who received or were told about ITN in the last 6 months were three times more likely to have used it than those who were not (OR 3.25; 95% CI 1.5–7.10. Households whose heads were engaged as a farmer (adjusted OR 0.137; 95% CI: 0.04–0.50 and housewife (OR 0.26; 95% CI: 0.08–0.82 were less likely to use ITN than those of other occupations. Conclusion. The findings indicate low ITN ownership and utilization among the households. Intensive health education and community mobilization effort should be employed to increase the possession and proper utilization of insecticide treated bednets.

Full Text Available Vector control, including the use of bednets, is recommended as a possible strategy for eliminating lymphatic filariasis (LF in post-conflict countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC. This study examined the geographical factors that influence bednet ownership in DRC in order to identify hard-to-reach communities that need to be better targeted. In particular, urban/rural differences and the influence of population density, proximity to cities and health facilities, plus access to major transport networks were investigated. Demographic and Health Survey geo-referenced cluster level data were used to map bednet coverage (proportion of households with at least one of any type of bednet or at least one insecticide-treated net (ITN, and ITN density (ITNs per person for 260 clusters. Bivariate and multiple logistic or Poisson regression analyses were used to determine significant relationships. Overall, bednet (30% and ITN (9% coverage were very low with significant differences found between urban and rural clusters. In rural clusters, ITN coverage/density was positively correlated with population density (r = 0.25, 0.27 respectively, p<0.01, and negatively with the distance to the two largest cities, Kinshasa or Lubumbashi (r = -0.28, -0.30 respectively, p<0.0001. Further, ownership was significantly negatively correlated with distance to primary national roads and railways (all three measures, distance to main rivers (any bednet only and distance to the nearest health facility (ITNs only. Logistic and Poisson regression models fitted to the rural cluster data indicated that, after controlling for measured covariates, ownership levels in the Bas-Congo province close to Kinshasa were much larger than that of other provinces. This was most noticeable when considering ITN coverage (odds ratio: 5.3, 95% CI: 3.67-7.70. This analysis provides key insights into the barriers of bednet ownership, which will help inform both LF

Full Text Available Abstract Background Pyrethroid resistance is now widespread in Anopheles gambiae, the major vector for malaria in sub-Saharan Africa. This resistance may compromise malaria vector control strategies that are currently in use in endemic areas. In this context, a new tool for management of resistant mosquitoes based on the combination of a pyrethroid-treated bednet and carbamate-treated plastic sheeting was developed. Methods In the laboratory, the insecticidal activity and wash resistance of four carbamate-treated materials: a cotton/polyester blend, a polyvinyl chloride tarpaulin, a cotton/polyester blend covered on one side with polyurethane, and a mesh of polypropylene fibres was tested. These materials were treated with bendiocarb at 100 mg/m2 and 200 mg/m2 with and without a binding resin to find the best combination for field studies. Secondly, experimental hut trials were performed in southern Benin to test the efficacy of the combined use of a pyrethroid-treated bednet and the carbamate-treated material that was the most wash-resistant against wild populations of pyrethroid-resistant An. gambiae and Culex quinquefasciatus. Results Material made of polypropylene mesh (PPW provided the best wash resistance (up to 10 washes, regardless of the insecticide dose, the type of washing, or the presence or absence of the binding resin. The experimental hut trial showed that the combination of carbamate-treated PPW and a pyrethroid-treated bednet was extremely effective in terms of mortality and inhibition of blood feeding of pyrethroid-resistant An. gambiae. This efficacy was found to be proportional to the total surface of the walls. This combination showed a moderate effect against wild populations of Cx. quinquefasciatus, which were strongly resistant to pyrethroid. Conclusion These preliminary results should be confirmed, including evaluation of entomological, parasitological, and clinical parameters. Selective pressure on resistance

Full Text Available Abstract Background Although the universal coverage campaign of insecticide-treated mosquito bednets (ITNs has been associated with improved malaria outcomes, recent reports indicate that the campaign is losing its sparkle in some countries. In Malawi, the universal coverage campaign was implemented in 2012, but its impacts are yet to be ascertained. Thus, this study examined the effects of the campaign on malaria morbidity among children in Malawi. Methods This is a repeated cross-sectional study. The study used nationally-representative malaria indicator survey (MIS data collected in 2012 and 2014. In total, the analysis included 4193 children between the ages of 6 and 59 months (2171 from 2012 MIS and 2022 from 2014 MIS. ITNs coverage and malaria morbidity before (2012 = pre-test/control and after (2014 = post-test/treated the universal coverage campaign of ITNs were compared. The treated and control samples were matched on measured relevant covariates using propensity scores. Results The mean number of ITNs per household improved significantly from 1.1 (SD 1.0 in 2012 to 1.4 (SD 1.1 in 2014 (p bed nets was not significantly associated with malaria morbidity in 2014 (RR = 0.92; 95 % CI 0.76–1.12, but it was in 2012 (RR = 0.83; 95 % CI 0.70–1.00. Conclusions The universal coverage campaign of ITNs was not associated with a reduced burden of malaria among children in Malawi. This was likely due to increased insecticide resistance, inconsistent use of bednets and under-utilization of other methods of malaria control. This calls for a multifaceted approach in the fight against malaria instead of simple dependence on ITNs. In particular, local or community level

Although the universal coverage campaign of insecticide-treated mosquito bednets (ITNs) has been associated with improved malaria outcomes, recent reports indicate that the campaign is losing its sparkle in some countries. In Malawi, the universal coverage campaign was implemented in 2012, but its impacts are yet to be ascertained. Thus, this study examined the effects of the campaign on malaria morbidity among children in Malawi. This is a repeated cross-sectional study. The study used nationally-representative malaria indicator survey (MIS) data collected in 2012 and 2014. In total, the analysis included 4193 children between the ages of 6 and 59 months (2171 from 2012 MIS and 2022 from 2014 MIS). ITNs coverage and malaria morbidity before (2012 = pre-test/control) and after (2014 = post-test/treated) the universal coverage campaign of ITNs were compared. The treated and control samples were matched on measured relevant covariates using propensity scores. The mean number of ITNs per household improved significantly from 1.1 (SD 1.0) in 2012 to 1.4 (SD 1.1) in 2014 (p universal coverage campaign of ITNs was not associated with a reduced burden of malaria among children in Malawi. This was likely due to increased insecticide resistance, inconsistent use of bednets and under-utilization of other methods of malaria control. This calls for a multifaceted approach in the fight against malaria instead of simple dependence on ITNs. In particular, local or community level malaria interventions should go hand in hand with the universal coverage campaign.

U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior — These are shapefiles and ARC/INFO polygon coverages showing the isopachs of total net coal in beds greater than or equal to 1.2' thick for the A through G coal...

Although malaria prevalence has witnessed a significant reduction within the past decade, malaria still constitutes a major health and economic problem, especially to low-income countries. Insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) remain one of the primary measures for preventing the malignant disease. Unfortunately, the success of ITN campaigns is hampered by improper use and natural decay in ITN-efficacy over time. Many models aimed at studying malaria transmission and control fail to account for this decay, as well as mosquito demography and feeding preferences exhibited by mosquitoes towards humans. Omitting these factors can misrepresent disease risk, while understanding their effects on malaria dynamics can inform control policy. We present a model for malaria dynamics that incorporates these factors, and a systematic analysis, including stability and sensitivity analyses of the model under different conditions. The model with constant ITN-efficacy exhibits a backward bifurcation emphasizing the need for sustained control measures until the basic reproduction number, R0, drops below a critical value at which control is feasible. The infectious and partially immune human populations and R0 are highly sensitive to the probability that a mosquito feeds successfully on a human, ITN coverage and the maximum biting rate of mosquitoes, irrespective of whether ITN-efficacy is constant or declines over time. This implies that ITNs play an important role in disease control. When ITN-efficacy wanes over time, we identify disease risks and corresponding ITN coverage, as well as feeding preference levels for which the disease can be controlled or eradicated. Our study leads to important insights that could assist in the design and implementation of better malaria control strategies. We conclude that ITNs that can retain their effectiveness for longer periods will be more appropriate in the fight against malaria and that making more ITNs available to highly endemic regions is

Full Text Available Abstract Background Studies show that the burden of malaria remains huge particularly in low-income settings. Although effective malaria control measures such as insecticide-treated nets (ITNs have been promoted, relatively little is known about their equity dimension. Understanding variations in their use in low-income settings is important for scaling up malaria control programmes particularly ITNs. The objective of this paper is to measure the extent and causes of inequalities in the ownership and utilisation of bednets across socioeconomic groups (SEGs and age groups in Tanga District, north-eastern Tanzania. Methods A questionnaire was administered to heads of 1,603 households from rural and urban areas. Households were categorized into SEGs using both an asset-based wealth index and education level of the household head. Concentration indices and regression-based measures of inequality were computed to analyse both vertical and horizontal inequalities in ownership and utilisation of bednets. Focus Group Discussions (FGDs were used to explore community perspectives on the causes of inequalities. Results Use of ITNs remained appallingly low compared to the RBM target of 80% coverage. Inequalities in ownership of ITNs and all nets combined were significantly pro-rich and were much more pronounced in rural areas. FGDs revealed that lack of money was the key factor for not using ITNs followed by negative perceptions about the effect of insecticides on the health of users. Household SES, living within the urban areas and being under-five were positively associated with bednet ownership and/or utilisation. Conclusion The results highlight the need for mass distribution of ITN; a community-wide programme to treat all untreated nets and to promote the use of Long-Lasting Insecticidal nets (LLINs or longer-lasting treatment of nets. The rural population and under-fives should be targeted through highly subsidised schemes and mass distribution of

Full Text Available Abstract Background In March 2008, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu governments raised the goal of their National Malaria Programmes from control to elimination. Vector control measures, such as indoor residual spraying (IRS and long-lasting insecticidal bednets (LLINs are key integral components of this programme. Compliance with these interventions is dependent on their acceptability and on the socio-cultural context of the local population. These factors need to be investigated locally prior to programme implementation. Method Twelve focus group discussions (FGDs were carried out in Malaita and Temotu Provinces, Solomon Islands in 2008. These discussions explored user perceptions of acceptability and preference for three brands of long-lasting insecticide-treated bednets (LLINs and identified a number of barriers to their proper and consistent use. Results Mosquito nuisance and perceived threat of malaria were the main determinants of bednet use. Knowledge of malaria and the means to prevent it were not sufficient to guarantee compliance with LLIN use. Factors such as climate, work and evening social activities impact on the use of bednets, particularly in men. LLIN acceptability plays a varying role in compliance with their use in villages involved in this study. Participants in areas of reported high and year round mosquito nuisance and perceived threat of malaria reported LLIN use regardless of any reported unfavourable characteristics. Those in areas of low or seasonal mosquito nuisance were more likely to describe the unfavourable characteristics of LLINs as reasons for their intermittent or non-compliance. The main criterion for LLIN brand acceptability was effectiveness in preventing mosquito bites and malaria. Discussions highlighted considerable confusion around LLIN care and washing which may be impacting on their effectiveness and reducing their acceptability in Solomon Islands. Conclusion Providing LLINs that are acceptable

Full Text Available Abstract Background The Timor-Leste Ministry of Health has recently finalized the National Malaria Control Strategy for 2010-2020. A key component of this roadmap is to provide universal national coverage with long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLINs in support of achieving the primary goal of reducing both morbidity and mortality from malaria by 30% in the first three years, followed by a further reduction of 20% by end of the programme cycle in 2020 1. The strategic plan calls for this target to be supported by a comprehensive information, education and communication (IEC programme; however, there is limited prior research into household and personal usage patterns to assist in the creation of targeted, effective, and socio-culturally specific behaviour change materials. Methods Nine separate focus group discussions (FGDs were carried out in Dili, Manatuto, and Covalima districts, Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, in July 2010. These focus groups primarily explored themes of perceived malaria risk, causes of malaria, net usage patterns within families, barriers to correct and consistent usage, and the daily experience of users (both male and female in households with at least one net. Comprehensive qualitative analysis utilized open source analysis software. Results The primary determinants of net usage were a widespread perception that nets could or should only be used by pregnant women and young children, and the availability of sufficient sleeping space under a limited number of nets within households. Both nuisance biting and disease prevention were commonly cited as primary motivations for usage, while seasonality was not a significant factor. Long-term net durability and ease of hanging were seen as key attributes in net design preference. Very frequent washing cycles were common, potentially degrading net effectiveness. Finally, extensive re-purposing of nets (fishing, protecting crops was both reported and observed, and may

Background Despite increased access and ownership, barriers to insecticide-treated bednet (ITN) use persist. While barriers within the home have been well documented, the challenges to net use when sleeping away from home remain relatively unexplored. This study examines common situations in which people sleep away from home and the barriers to ITN use in those situations. Methods To explore these issues, a group of researchers conducted 28 in-depth interviews and four focus groups amongst adults from net-owning households in four Ugandan districts. Results In addition to sleeping outside during hot season, participants identified social events, livelihood activities, and times of difficulty as circumstances in which large numbers of people sleep away from home. Associated challenges to ITN use included social barriers such as fear of appearing proud, logistical barriers such as not having a place to hang a net, and resource limitations such as not having an extra net with which to travel. Social disapproval emerged as an important barrier to ITN use in public settings. Conclusions Unique barriers to ITN use exist when people spend the night away from home. It is essential to identify and address these barriers in order to reduce malaria exposure in such situations. For events like funerals or religious “crusades” where large numbers of people sleep away from home, alternative approaches, such as spatial repellents may be more appropriate than ITNs. Additional research is required to identify the acceptability and feasibility of alternative prevention strategies in situations where ITNs are unlikely to be effective. PMID:24602371

Blood-meal sources of malaria vectors affect their capacity to transmit the disease. Most efficient malaria vectors prefer human hosts. However, with increasing personal protection measures it becomes more difficult for them to find human hosts. Here recent malaria vector blood-meal sources in western Kenya highlands were investigated. Adult mosquitoes resting indoors, outdoors and exiting through windows were collected in three study areas within the western Kenya highlands from June 2011 to June 2013. A census of people, livestock and of insecticide-treated nets was done per house. Mosquito blood-meal sources were determined as human, goat, bovine or chicken using enzyme-linked-immunosorbent assays. Most (86.3 %) households possessed at least one bednet, 57.2 % had domesticated animals and 83.6 % had people sharing houses with livestock at night. Most (94.9 %) unfed malaria vectors were caught exiting through windows. Overall, 53.1 % of Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto obtained blood-meals from humans, 26.5 % from goats and 18.4 % from bovines. Single blood-meal sources by An. gambiae s.s. from humans were 26.5 %, 8.2 % from bovines and 2.0 % from goats. Mixed blood-meal sources by An. gambiae s.s. identified included: 24.5 % human/goat, 10.2 % human/bovine, 8.2 % human/bovine/goat and also 8.2 % bovine/goat. One An. arabiensis mosquito obtained blood-meal only from humans. An unusually high frequency of animal and mixed human-animal blood meals in the major malaria vector An. gambiae s.s. was revealed in the western Kenya highlands where bednet coverage is above the WHO target. The shift in blood-meal sources from humans to livestock is most likely the vectors' response to increased bednet coverage and the close location of livestock frequently in the same house as people at night. Livestock-targeted interventions should be considered under these circumstances to address residual malaria transmission.

无线电设备的测试需要较多的专业知识,而且步骤繁琐.为简化无线电设备的测试过程和缩短测试时间,以VB.NET为基础研究了一种无线电设备综合测试平台.该平台能够自动控制各种无线电通信设备,实现各种参数的自动测量和处理,并自动完成数据的记录及报表的生成.使用该平台可以极大地简化人工操作的复杂度、缩短测量时间并进一步提高测试结果的准确性和权威性.%Professional knowledge is a precondition for testing radio devices and the process is so complicated. To simplify the process and shorten the time, a synthesis test bed for radio device is designed based on VB . NET. Utilizing the proposed test bed, all apparatus needed for test are connected, and every parameter is measured and processed automatically, before data recording and reports building. By utilizing the test bed proposed, the complexity of operating is simplified, the measure time is shortea The veracity and the authority of the test result is improved further.

The human population in the highlands of Nyanza Province, western Kenya, is subject to sporadic epidemics of Plasmodium falciparum. Indoor residual spraying (IRS) and long-lasting insecticide treated nets (LLINs) are used widely in this area. These interventions are most effective when Anopheles rest and feed indoors and when biting occurs at times when individuals use LLINs. It is therefore important to test the current assumption of vector feeding preferences, and late night feeding times, in order to estimate the extent to which LLINs protect the inhabitants from vector bites. Mosquito collections were made for six consecutive nights each month between June 2011 and May 2012. CDC light-traps were set next to occupied LLINs inside and outside randomly selected houses and emptied hourly. The net usage of residents, their hours of house entry and exit and times of sleeping were recorded and the individual hourly exposure to vectors indoors and outdoors was calculated. Using these data, the true protective efficacy of nets (P*), for this population was estimated, and compared between genders, age groups and from month to month. Primary vector species (Anopheles funestus s.l. and Anopheles arabiensis) were more likely to feed indoors but the secondary vector Anopheles coustani demonstrated exophagic behaviour (p malaria vectors from 1.3 to 0.47 bites per night. The P* for the population over the study period was calculated as 51% and varied significantly with age and season (p malaria vector bites. It is likely that P* would be estimated to be greater if the overall suppression of the local vector population due to widespread community net use could be taken into account. However, the overlap of early biting habit of vectors and human activity in this region indicates that additional methods of vector control are required to limit transmission. Regular surveillance of both vector behaviour and domestic human-behaviour patterns would assist the planning of future

Biodegradation of naphthalene by Ralstonia eutropha (also known as Cupriavidus necator) in a packed-bed airlift reactor with net draft tube (PBALR-nd) was studied; the Kissiris pieces were the packing material. The reactor hydrodynamics has been characterized under abiotic conditions and the dependencies of the superficial gas velocity (U G) on the gas holdup (εG), liquid mixing time, and mass transfer coefficient were determined. The improving role of the net draft tube in this small column reactor (height 42 cm, ID 5 cm) was confirmed. The flow regime was described using the εG α U G (n) expression, and bubbly flow was observed in PBALR-nd at U G kinetics of biodegradation was modeled using the Haldane and Aiba equations. The fitting of the experimental results to the models were done according to the nonlinear least square regression technique. The biokinetic constants (q m, K s, and K i) were estimated and q m as the specific biodegradation rate was equaled to 0.415 and 0.24 mgnaph./mgcell h for the Haldane and Aiba equations, respectively. The goodness of fit reported as R (2) and root-mean-square error (RMSE) showed the adequate fitness of the Haldane and Aiba models in predicting naphthalene biodegradation kinetics. On the basis of the HPLC results, a hypothetical pathway for the biodegradation was presented.

The roll back malaria (RBM) movement promotes the use of insecticide-treated bednets (ITNs) and intermittent presumptive treatment (IPT) of malaria infection as preventive measures against the adverse effects of malaria among pregnant women in Africa. To determine the use of these preventive measures we undertook a community-based survey of recently pregnant women randomly selected from communities in four districts of Kenya in December 2001. Of the 1814 women surveyed, only 5% had slept under an ITN. More than half of the 13% of women using a bednet (treated or untreated) had bought their nets from shops or markets. Women from rural areas used bednets less than urban women (11% vs. 27%; P commodity supply and service costs to clients will be the greatest impediments to reaching RBM targets.

In high to moderate malaria transmission areas of Kenya, long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) are provided free of charge to pregnant women and infants during routine antenatal care (ANC) and immunization respectively. Quantities of LLINs distributed to clinics are quantified based on a combination of monthly consumption data and population size of target counties. However, this approach has been shown to lead to stock-outs in targeted clinics. In this study, a novel LLINs need quantification approach for clinics in the routine distribution system was developed. The estimated need was then compared to the actual allocation to identify potential areas of LLIN over- or under-allocation in the high malaria transmission areas of Western Kenya. A geocoded database of public health facilities was developed and linked to monthly LLIN allocation. A network analysis approach was implemented using the location of all public clinics and topographic layers to model travel time. Estimated travel time, socio-economic and ANC attendance data were used to model clinic catchment areas and the probability of ANC service use within these catchments. These were used to define the number of catchment population who were likely to use these clinics for the year 2015 equivalent to LLIN need. Actual LLIN allocation was compared with the estimated need. Clinics were then classified based on whether allocation matched with the need, and if not, whether they were over or under-allocated. 888 (70%) public health facilities were allocated 591,880 LLINs in 2015. Approximately 682,377 (93%) pregnant women and infants were likely to have attended an LLIN clinic. 36% of the clinics had more LLIN than was needed (over-allocated) while 43% had received less (under-allocated). Increasing efficiency of allocation by diverting over supply of LLIN to clinics with less stock and fully covering 43 clinics that did not receive nets in 2015 would allow for complete matching of need with distribution. The

years old living in the villages from 1998 to 2000. In 2000, after two years of bednet use, the prevalence of wild types in codon 51, 59, and 108 of dhfr increased significantly in Magoda compared with previous years. Furthermore, the prevalence of dhfr wild types was significantly higher in Magoda...

Full Text Available Abstract Background Neither indoor residual spraying (IRS nor long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs are able to fully interrupt transmission in holoendemic Africa as single interventions. The combining of IRS and LLINs presents an opportunity for improved control and management of pyrethroid resistance through the simultaneous presentation of unrelated insecticides. Method Chlorfenapyr IRS and a pyrethroid-impregnated polyester LLIN (WHO approved were tested separately and together in experimental huts in southern Benin against pyrethroid resistant Anopheles gambiae and Culex quinquefasciatus. The bednets were deliberately holed with either six or 80 holes to examine the effect of increasing wear and tear on protectiveness. Anopheles gambiae were genotyped for the kdr gene to assess the combination's potential to prevent the selection of pyrethroid resistance. Results The frequency of kdr was 84%. The overall mortality rates of An. gambiae were 37% and 49% with the six-hole and 80-hole LLINs, respectively, and reached 57% with chlorfenapyr IRS. Overall mortality rates were significantly higher with the combination treatments (82-83% than with the LLIN or IRS individual treatments. Blood feeding (mosquito biting rates were lowest with the 6-hole LLIN (12%, intermediate with the 80-hole LLIN (32% and highest with untreated nets (56% with the 6-hole and 54% with the 80-hole nets. Blood feeding (biting rates and repellency of mosquitoes with the combination of LLIN and chlorfenapyr IRS showed significant improvement compared to the IRS treatment but did not differ from the LLIN treatments indicating that the LLINs were the primary agents of personal protection. The combination killed significantly higher proportions of Cx. quinquefasciatus (51%, 41% than the LLIN (15%, 13% or IRS (32% treatments. Conclusion The chlorfenapyr IRS component was largely responsible for controlling pyrethroid-resistant mosquitoes and the LLIN component was largely

Neither indoor residual spraying (IRS) nor long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) are able to fully interrupt transmission in holoendemic Africa as single interventions. The combining of IRS and LLINs presents an opportunity for improved control and management of pyrethroid resistance through the simultaneous presentation of unrelated insecticides. Chlorfenapyr IRS and a pyrethroid-impregnated polyester LLIN (WHO approved) were tested separately and together in experimental huts in southern Benin against pyrethroid resistant Anopheles gambiae and Culex quinquefasciatus. The bednets were deliberately holed with either six or 80 holes to examine the effect of increasing wear and tear on protectiveness. Anopheles gambiae were genotyped for the kdr gene to assess the combination's potential to prevent the selection of pyrethroid resistance. The frequency of kdr was 84%. The overall mortality rates of An. gambiae were 37% and 49% with the six-hole and 80-hole LLINs, respectively, and reached 57% with chlorfenapyr IRS. Overall mortality rates were significantly higher with the combination treatments (82-83%) than with the LLIN or IRS individual treatments. Blood feeding (mosquito biting) rates were lowest with the 6-hole LLIN (12%), intermediate with the 80-hole LLIN (32%) and highest with untreated nets (56% with the 6-hole and 54% with the 80-hole nets). Blood feeding (biting) rates and repellency of mosquitoes with the combination of LLIN and chlorfenapyr IRS showed significant improvement compared to the IRS treatment but did not differ from the LLIN treatments indicating that the LLINs were the primary agents of personal protection. The combination killed significantly higher proportions of Cx. quinquefasciatus (51%, 41%) than the LLIN (15%, 13%) or IRS (32%) treatments. The chlorfenapyr IRS component was largely responsible for controlling pyrethroid-resistant mosquitoes and the LLIN component was largely responsible for blood feeding inhibition and personal

For the aerobic biodegradation of the fungicide and defoliant 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (2,4,6-TCP), a bench-scale packed-bed bioreactor equipped with a net draft tube riser for liquid circulation and oxygenation (PB-ALR) was constructed. To obtain a high packed-bed volume relative to the whole bioreactor volume, a high A{sub D}/A{sub R} ratio was used. Reactor's downcomer was packed with a porous support of volcanic stone fragments. PB-ALR hydrodynamics and oxygen mass transfer behavior was evaluated and compared to the observed behavior of the unpacked reactor operating as an internal airlift reactor (ALR). Overall gas holdup values {epsilon}{sub G}, and zonal oxygen mass transfer coefficients determined at various airflow rates in the PB-ALR, were higher than those obtained with the ALR. When comparing mixing time values obtained in both cases, a slight increment in mixing time was observed when reactor was operated as a PB-ALR. By using a mixed microbial community, the biofilm reactor was used to evaluate the aerobic biodegradation of 2,4,6-TCP. Three bacterial strains identified as Burkholderia sp., Burkholderia kururiensis and Stenotrophomonas sp. constituted the microbial consortium able to cometabolically degrade the 2,4,6-TCP, using phenol as primary substrate. This consortium removed 100% of phenol and near 99% of 2,4,6-TCP. Mineralization and dehalogenation of 2,4,6-TCP was evidenced by high COD removal efficiencies ({approx}95%), and by the stoichiometric release of chloride ions from the halogenated compound ({approx}80%). Finally, it was observed that the microbial consortium was also capable to metabolize 2,4,6-TCP without phenol as primary substrate, with high removal efficiencies (near 100% for 2,4,6-TCP, 92% for COD and 88% for chloride ions)

Long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLINs) are one of the main methods used for controlling malaria transmission in Mozambique. The proliferation of several types of LLINs and the re-emergence of insecticide resistance in the local vector populations poses challenges to the local malaria control programme on selecting suitable insecticide-based vector control products. Therefore, this study evaluated the insecticide susceptibility and bio-efficacy of selected new LLINs against wild populations of Anopheles funestus sensu lato and A. gambiae s.l. from Northern and Central Mozambique. The study also investigated whether the insecticide contents on the LINNs fabrics were within the WHOPES recommended target range. The susceptibility of 2-5 day old wild female A. funestus and A. gambiae sensu stricto against the major classes of insecticides used for vector control, viz: deltamethrin (0.05 %), permethrin (0.75 %), propoxur (0.1 %), bendiocarb (0.1 %) and DDT (4 %), was determined using WHO cylinder susceptibility tests. WHO cone bioassays were conducted to determine the bio-efficacy of both pyrethroid-only LLINs (Olyset(®), Permanet 2.0(®), NetProtect(®) and Interceptor(®)) and, Permanet 3.0(®) a combination LLIN against A. funestus s.s, from Balama, Mocuba and Milange districts, respectively. The bio-efficacy of LLINs against the insectary-susceptible A. arabiensis (Durban strain) was assessed, as well. Untreated bednet swatches were used as negative controls. Chemical analyses, by high performance liquid chromatography, were undertaken to assess whether the insecticide contents on the LLINs fabrics fell within recommended target dose ranges. The frequency of kdr gene mutations was determined from a random sample of A. gambiae s.s. from both WHO susceptibility and cone bioassay experiments. Anopheles funestus from Balama district showed resistance to deltamethrin and possible resistance to permethrin, propoxur and bendiocarb, whilst A. gambiae from

Full Text Available Abstract Background Long-lasting insecticide-treated bednets (LLITN have demonstrated significant impact in reducing malaria-related childhood morbidity and mortality. However, utilization of LLITN by under-five children is not satisfactory in many sub-Saharan African countries due to behavioural barriers. Previous studies had focused on the coverage and ownership of LLITN. The effect of skill-based training for household heads on LLITN utilization had not yet been investigated. A cluster-randomized trial on the effect of training of household heads on the use of LLITN was done in Ethiopia to fill this knowledge gap. Methods The study included 22 (11 intervention and 11 control villages in southwest Ethiopia. The intervention consisted of tailored training of household heads about the proper use of LLITN and community network system. All households in each group received free LLITN. Data were collected at baseline, six and 12 months of the follow up periods. Utilization of LLITN in the control and intervention villages was compared at baseline and follow up periods. Results A total of 21,673; 14,735 and 13,758 individuals were included at baseline, sixth and twelfth months of the project period. At the baseline survey, 47.9% of individuals in the intervention villages and 68.4% in the control villages reported that they had utilized LLITN the night before the survey. At the six month, 81.0% of individuals in the intervention villages and 79.3% in the control villages had utilized LLITN. The utilization of LLITN in all age groups in the intervention villages was increased by 17.7 percentage point (95% CI 9.7-25.6 at sixth month and by 31.0 percentage point (95% CI 16.9-45.1 at the twelfth month. Among under-five children, the LLITN utilization increased by 31.6 percentage point (95% CI 17.3-45.8 at the sixth month and 38.4 percentage point (95% CI 12.1-64.7 at the twelfth months of the project period. Conclusion Household level skill

Full Text Available Abstract Background BRAC, an indigenous non-governmental development organization (NGO, has been implementing a programme to prevent and control malaria in the 13 malaria-endemic districts of Bangladesh since 2007. One of the critical preventive interventions is the distribution of insecticidal bednets (long-lasting insecticide-treated nets, LLINs and insecticide-treated ordinary nets, ITNs to the community free of cost. This study aimed to assess progress in the possession, preferential use, and knowledge on use of the LLIN/ITNs including the programme's avowed pro-poor inclination one and three and half years after intervention began. Methods A convenient sampling strategy based on malaria endemicity in the districts was adopted. First, thirty upazila (sub-district, with a population around 250,000s were selected at random, with high prevalent districts contributing more upazilas; second, from each upazila, one (2008 to two (2011 villages (covered by insecticidal bednet distribution programme were selected. From each village, households that had either one under-five child and/or a pregnant woman were included in the survey, one household being included only once. Data were collected using a pre-tested structured questionnaire. Results In all, 3,760 households in 2008 and 7,895 households in 2011 were surveyed for collecting relevant information. Proportion of households with at least one LLIN, and at least one LLIN/ITN increased (22-59 to 62-67% and 22-64% to 74-76% respectively over time, including increase in the mean number of LLIN/ITNs per household (≤ 1 to 1 +. The programme achieved > 80% coverage in sleeping under an LLIN/ITN in the case of under-five children and pregnant women, especially in the high-endemic districts. Knowledge regarding critical time of hanging the net also increased over time (7-22 to 44-54%, but remained low. The pro-poor inclination of the programme is reflected in the status of relevant indicators according

Full Text Available Abstract Background Indoor residual insecticide spraying (IRS and long-lasting insecticide treated nets (LLINs are commonly used together even though evidence that such combinations confer greater protection against malaria than either method alone is inconsistent. Methods A deterministic model of mosquito life cycle processes was adapted to allow parameterization with results from experimental hut trials of various combinations of untreated nets or LLINs (Olyset®, PermaNet 2.0®, Icon Life® nets with IRS (pirimiphos methyl, lambda cyhalothrin, DDT, in a setting where vector populations are dominated by Anopheles arabiensis, so that community level impact upon malaria transmission at high coverage could be predicted. Results Intact untreated nets alone provide equivalent personal protection to all three LLINs. Relative to IRS plus untreated nets, community level protection is slightly higher when Olyset® or PermaNet 2.0® nets are added onto IRS with pirimiphos methyl or lambda cyhalothrin but not DDT, and when Icon Life® nets supplement any of the IRS insecticides. Adding IRS onto any net modestly enhances communal protection when pirimiphos methyl is sprayed, while spraying lambda cyhalothrin enhances protection for untreated nets but not LLINs. Addition of DDT reduces communal protection when added to LLINs. Conclusions Where transmission is mediated primarily by An. arabiensis, adding IRS to high LLIN coverage provides only modest incremental benefit (e.g. when an organophosphate like pirimiphos methyl is used, but can be redundant (e.g. when a pyrethroid like lambda cyhalothin is used or even regressive (e.g. when DDT is used for the IRS. Relative to IRS plus untreated nets, supplementing IRS with LLINs will only modestly improve community protection. Beyond the physical protection that intact nets provide, additional protection against transmission by An. arabiensis conferred by insecticides will be remarkably small, regardless of

SBCC campaigns are designed to act on cognitive, social and emotional factors at the individual or community level. The combination of these factors, referred to as 'ideation', play a role in determining behaviour by reinforcing and confirming decisions about a particular health topic. This study introduces ideation theory and mediation analysis as a way to evaluate the impact of a malaria SBCC campaign in Tanzania, to determine whether exposure to a communication programme influenced universal coverage through mediating ideational variables. A household survey in three districts where community change agents (CCAs) were active was conducted to collect information on ITN use, number of ITNs in the household, and perceptions about ITN use and ownership. Variables relating to attitudes and beliefs were combined to make 'net ideation'. Using an ideational framework, a mediation analysis was conducted to see the impact exposure to a CCA only, mass media and community (M & C) messaging only, or exposure to both, had on household universal coverage, through the mediating variable net ideation. All three levels of exposure (CCA, M & C messaging, or exposure to both) were significantly associated with increased net ideation (CCA: 0.283, 95% CI: 0.136-0.429, p-value: controlling for net ideation. The results of this study indicate that mediation analysis is an applicable new tool to assess SBCC campaigns. Ideation as a mediator of the effects of communication exposure on household universal coverage has implications for designing SBCC to support both mass and continuous distribution efforts, since both heavily rely on consumer participation to obtain and maintain ITNs. Such systems can be strengthened by SBCC programming, generating demand through improving social norms about net ownership and use, perceived benefits of nets, and other behavioural constructs.

Colorado • Fort Bliss, Texas These sites served as test beds for the Army’s Net Zero Initiative, specifically, Net Zero Water , and the Army provided...have sustainability, energy efficiency, water conservation, recycling, pollution prevention, and green procurement programs in place that they can...ARMY NET ZERO PROVE OUT Final Net Zero Water Best Practices November 18, 2014 Distribution A Approved for public release

Long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) are one of the main interventions recommended by the World Health Organization for malaria vector control. LLINs are ineffective if they are not being used. Subsequent to the completion of a cluster randomized cross over trial conducted in rural Greater Accra where participants were provided with the 'Bɔkɔɔ System'-a set of solar powered net fan and light consoles with a solar panel and battery-or alternative household water filters, all trial participants were invited to participate in a Becker-DeGroot-Marschak auction to determine the mean willingness to pay (WTP) for the fan and light consoles and to estimate the demand curve for the units. Results demonstraed a mean WTP of approximately 55 Cedis (~13 USD). Demand results suggested that at a price which would support full manufacturing cost recovery, a majority of households in the area would be willing to purchase at least one such unit.

Two kinds of net operations.addition and Cartesian production of P/T nets,are introduced.They are defined on the set of underlying net of P/T systems.The conditions for preserving structural properties of Petri net after these operations are discussed.It is shown that the set of P/T nets forms and Abelian group for net addition operation and the inverse net of a P/T net in usual meaning of net theory is exactly the inverse of this P/T net as an element of the P/T net group;and that the set of P/T nets forms an Abelian ring for net addition and Caresian product operations.

Full Text Available Malaria remains a major public health problem in Africa, and its prevalence in Cameroon stands at 29%. Long Lasting Insecticide Nets (LLINs were distributed in 2011 to reduce malaria mortality and morbidity; however, assessment of this intervention is scanty. The present study in the Tombel health district (THD investigated the impact of this distribution on malaria prevalence. A total of 31,657 hospital records from 3 health facilities in 3 health areas for 2010–2013 were examined. Records for 2010 and 2011 provided predistribution baseline data, while those of 2012 and 2013 represented postdistribution data. 8,679 (27.4% patients were positive for malaria. Children below 5 years had the highest prevalence (40.7%. The number of confirmed cases was highest from June to August (peak rainy season. Malaria prevalence was higher in males (25.3% than in females (23.2%. Malaria prevalence increased in THD from 26.7% in 2010 to 30.7% in 2011 but dropped to 22.7% in 2012 and then increased in 2013 to 29.5%. There was an overall drop in the total number of confirmed malaria cases in 2012; this decrease was significant in Ebonji (p<0.001 and Nyasoso (p<0.015 health areas. The distribution of LLINs led to a short lived reduction in malaria prevalence in THD. LLIN distribution and other control activities should be reinforced to keep malaria prevalence low especially among the 0–5-year group.

Full Text Available Abstract Background To reduce the intolerable burden of malaria in pregnancy, the Ministry of Health in Uganda improved the antenatal care package by including a strong commitment to increase distribution of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs and introduction of intermittent preventive treatment with sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine for pregnant women (IPTp-SP as a national policy in 2000. This study assessed uptake of both ITNs and IPTp-SP by pregnant women as well as antenatal and maternity care use with the aim of optimizing their delivery. Methods 769 post-partum women were recruited from a rural area of central Uganda with perennial malaria transmission through a cross-sectional, community-based household survey in May 2005. Results Of the 769 women interviewed, antenatal clinic (ANC attendance was high (94.4%; 417 (57.7% visiting initially during the 2nd trimester, 242 (33.5% during the 3rd trimester and 266 (37.1% reporting ≥ 4 ANC visits. About 537 (71% and 272 (35.8% received one or ≥ 2 IPTp-SP doses respectively. Only 85 (15.8% received the first dose of IPTp-SP in the 3rd trimester. ITNs were used by 239 (31.3% of women during pregnancy and 314 (40.8% delivered their most recent pregnancy outside a health facility. Post-partum women who lacked post-primary education were more likely not to have attended four or more ANC visits (odds ratio [OR] 3.3, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.2–9.3. Conclusion These findings illustrate the need to strengthen capacity of the district to further improve antenatal care and maternity services utilization and IPTp-SP uptake. More specific and effective community health strategies to improve effective ANC, maternity services utilization and IPTp-SP uptake in rural communities should be undertaken.

Passive-treatment systems that route acidic mine drainage (AMD) through crushed limestone and/or organic-rich substrates have been used to remove the acidity and metals from various AMD sources, with a wide range of effects. This study evaluates treatment of net-acidic, oxic, iron-laden AMD with limestone alone, and with organic-rich compost layered with the limestone. In the fall of 2003, a treatment system consisting of two parallel, 500-m2 downflow cells followed by a 400-m2 aerobic settling pond and wetland was installed to neutralize the AMD from the Bell Mine, a large source of AMD and baseflow to the Schuylkill River in the Southern Anthracite Coalfield, in east-central Pennsylvania. Each downflow cell consisted of a lower substrate layer of 1,090 metric tons (t) of dolomitic limestone (60 wt% CaCO3) and an upper layer of 300 t of calcitic limestone (95 wt% CaCO3); one of the downflow cells also included a 0.3 m thick layer of mushroom compost over the limestone. AMD with pH of 3.5-4.3, dissolved oxygen of 6.6-9.9 mg/L, iron of 1.9-5.4 mg/L, and aluminum of 0.8-1.9 mg/L flooded each cell to a depth 0.65 m above the treatment substrates, percolated through the substrates to underlying, perforated outflow pipes, and then flowed through the aerobic pond and wetland before discharging to the Schuylkill River. Data on the flow rates and chemistry of the effluent for the treatment system indicated substantial neutralization by the calcitic limestone but only marginal effects from the dolomitic limestone or compost. Because of its higher transmissivity, the treatment cell containing only limestone neutralized greater quantities of acidity than the cell containing compost and limestone. On average, the treatment system removed 62% of the influent acidity, 47% of the dissolved iron, 34% of the dissolved aluminum, and 8% of the dissolved manganese. Prior to treatment of the Bell Discharge, the Schuylkill River immediately below its confluence with the discharge had p

Full Text Available Interaction nets are a graphical model of computation, which has been used to define efficient evaluators for functional calculi, and specifically lambda calculi with patterns. However, the flat structure of interaction nets forces pattern matching and functional behaviour to be encoded at the same level, losing some potential parallelism. In this paper, we introduce bigraphical nets, or binets for short, as a generalisation of interaction nets using ideas from bigraphs and port graphs, and we present a formal notation and operational semantics for binets. We illustrate their expressive power by examples of applications.

The Easter conference 2008 had several activities which for the author raised the same questions on cube nets in some work with eight-year-olds some time ago. In this article, the author muses on some problems from the Easter conference regarding nets of shapes. (Contains 1 note.)

Full Text Available Abstract Background Insecticide-treated bednets (ITNs reduce malaria transmission and are an important prevention tool. However, there are still information gaps on how the reduction in malaria transmission by ITNs affects parasite genetics population structure. This study examined the relationship between transmission reduction from ITN use and the population genetic diversity of Plasmodium falciparum in an area of high ITN coverage in western Kenya. Methods Parasite genetic diversity was assessed by scoring eight single copy neutral multilocus microsatellite (MS markers in samples collected from P. falciparum-infected children ( Results There were no significant changes in overall high mixed infections and unbiased expected heterozygosity between baseline (%MA = 94% and He = 0.75 and follow up (%MA = 95% and He = 0.79 years. However, locus specific analysis detected significant differences for some individual loci between the two time points. Pfg377 loci, a gametocyte-specific MS marker showed significant increase in mixed infections and He in the follow up survey (%MA = 53% and He = 0.57 compared to the baseline (%MA = 30% and He = 0.29. An opposite trend was observed in the erythrocyte binding protein (EBP MS marker. There was moderate genetic differentiation at the Pfg377 and TAA60 loci (FST = 0.117 and 0.137 respectively between the baseline and post-ITN parasite populations. Further analysis revealed linkage disequilibrium (LD of the microsatellites in the baseline (14 significant pair-wise tests and ISA = 0.016 that was broken in the follow up parasite population (6 significant pairs and ISA = 0.0003. The locus specific change in He, the moderate population differentiation and break in LD between the baseline and follow up years suggest an underlying change in population sub-structure despite the stability in the overall genetic diversity and multiple infection levels. Conclusions The results from this study suggest that although P

Full Text Available Abstract Background Long-lasting insecticide-treated bednets (LLITN have demonstrated a significant effect in reducing malaria-related morbidity and mortality. However, barriers on the utilization of LLITN have hampered the desired outcomes. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of community empowerment on the burden of malaria and anaemia in under-five children in Ethiopia. Methods A cluster randomized trial was done in 22 (11 intervention and 11 control villages in south-west Ethiopia. The intervention consisted of tailored training of household heads about the proper use of LLITN and community network system. The burden of malaria and anaemia in under-five children was determined through mass blood investigation at baseline, six and 12 months of the project period. Cases of malaria and anaemia were treated based on the national protocol. The burden of malaria and anaemia between the intervention and control villages was compared using the complex logistic regression model by taking into account the clustering effect. Eight Focus group discussions were conducted to complement the quantitative findings. Results A total of 2,105 household heads received the intervention and the prevalence of malaria and anaemia was assessed among 2410, 2037 and 2612 under-five children at baseline, six and 12 months of the project period respectively. During the high transmission/epidemic season, children in the intervention arm were less likely to have malaria as compared to children in the control arm (OR = 0.42; 95%CI: 0.32, 0.57. Symptomatic malaria also steadily declined in the intervention villages compared to the control villages in the follow up periods. Children in the intervention arm were less likely to be anaemic compared to those in the control arm both at the high (OR = 0.84; 95%CI: 0.71, 0.99 and low (OR = 0.73; 95%CI: 0.60, 0.89 transmission seasons. Conclusion Training of household heads on the utilization of LLITN significantly

Full Text Available Abstract Background In Ethiopia, the utilization of long-lasting insecticide-treated bednets (LLITN is hampered by behavioural factors such as low awareness and negative attitude of the community. The aim of this study was to present the design and baseline results of a cluster randomized trial on the effect of training of household heads on the use of LLITN. Methods This baseline survey was undertaken from February to March, 2009 as part of a randomized cluster trial. A total of 11 intervention and 11 control Gots (villages were included in the Gilgel Gibe Field Research Centre, south-west Ethiopia. House to house visit was done in 4135 households to collect information about the use of LLITN and socio-demographic variables. For the diagnosis of malaria and anaemia, blood samples were collected from 2410 under-five children and 242 pregnant women. Results One fourth of the households in the intervention and control Gots had functional LLITN. Only 30% of the observed LLITN in the intervention and 28% in the control Gots were hanged properly. Adults were more likely to utilize LLITN than under-five children in the control and intervention Gots. The prevalence of malaria in under-five children in the intervention and control Gots was 10.5% and 8.3% respectively. The intervention and control Gots had no significant difference concerning the prevalence of malaria in under-five children, [OR = 1.28, (95%CI: 0.97, 1.69]. Eight (6.1% pregnant women in the intervention and eight (7.2% in the control Gots were positive for malaria (P = 0.9. Children in the intervention Gots were less likely to have anaemia than children in the control Gots, [OR = 0.75, (95%CI: 0.62, 0.85]. Conclusion The availability and utilization of LLITN was low in the study area. The prevalence of malaria and anaemia was high. Intervention strategies of malaria should focus on high risk population and vulnerable groups.

Provides an introduction to the new theory of Net Locality and the profound effect on individuals and societies when everything is located or locatable. Describes net locality as an emerging form of location awareness central to all aspects of digital media, from mobile phones, to Google Maps, to...... of emerging technologies, from GeoCities to GPS, Wi-Fi, Wiki Me, and Google Android....

Provides an introduction to the new theory of Net Locality and the profound effect on individuals and societies when everything is located or locatable. Describes net locality as an emerging form of location awareness central to all aspects of digital media, from mobile phones, to Google Maps, to...... of emerging technologies, from GeoCities to GPS, Wi-Fi, Wiki Me, and Google Android....

RESTful .NET is the first book that teaches Windows developers to build RESTful web services using the latest Microsoft tools. Written by Windows Communication Foundation (WFC) expert Jon Flanders, this hands-on tutorial demonstrates how you can use WCF and other components of the .NET 3.5 Framework to build, deploy and use REST-based web services in a variety of application scenarios. RESTful architecture offers a simpler approach to building web services than SOAP, SOA, and the cumbersome WS- stack. And WCF has proven to be a flexible technology for building distributed systems not necessa

The study objective was to quantify the movement of hospital bed occupants relative to the bed in typical bed articulations. Movement of a patient in bed results in two common adverse events: (a) increase in shear and friction forces between the patient and bed, which are extrinsic pressure ulcer risk factors, and (b) musculoskeletal injuries to nurses, resulting from repositioning patients who have migrated down in bed. The study involved 12 participants who lay supine in three hospital beds, which were articulated to common positions. Body movement relative to the bed was quantified with the use of motion capture. Cumulative movement, net displacement, and torso compression (shoulder to trochanter distance) were calculated for different bed types and bed movements. Bed design and bed movement had a significant effect on most of the dependent variables. Bed design (e.g., type) influenced cumulative movement by up to 115%, net displacement by up to 70%, and torso compression by about 20%. Bed movement (e.g., knee elevation) reduced cumulative migration by up to 35%. The quantification of patient migration provides a metric for evaluating the interaction between body and bed surfaces. Overall, the measures were sensitive to design changes in bed frames, bed articulations, and mattress inflation. Documentation of the cumulative movement, net displacement, and torso compression provides hospital bed designers quantifiable measures for reducing migration and potentially shear and friction forces when designing bed frames, bed articulations, and mattresses. Optimization of these metrics may ultimately have an impact on patient and caregiver health.

Full Text Available Em 1992 foi feita uma investigação sobre o efeito protetor do uso de mosquiteiros impregnados com deltametrina, em uma população do município de Costa Marques, Rondônia, sujeita à transmissão malárica. Os mosquiteiros impregnados se comportaram de modo semelhante aos não impregnados, sem modificar os índices de infecção na época de baixa transmissão. A análise multivariada, por idade e títulos de anticorpos, mostrou uma proteção significante para o grupo com mosquiteiros impregnados contra o risco de infecção, apenas na estação de alta transmissão, quando os mosquiteiros foram usados mais regularmente. Não houve diferença no efeito de ambos os tipos de mosquiteiros na prevenção de elevadas parasitemias. Ao fim do estudo, ocorreu diminuição da prevalência de esplenomegalia em ambos os grupos, porém houve uma aparente recuperação da taxa normal de hematócrito em menores de 15 anos de idade em uso de mosquiteiros impregnados.In 1992 an investigation regarding the value of insecticide impregnated mosquito nets was conducted in the municipality of Costa Marques, Rondonia. Impregnated mosquito nets gave similar protection to those not impregnated, without modifying the incidence of infection during the season of low transmission. The multivariate analysis for age and antibody titre showed a significant protection of impregnated nets against the risk of infection only in the season of high transmission, when bednets were used more correctly. There was no difference in the effect of both kinds of bednets in the prevention of high parasitaemia. At the end of the study, there was a reduction of the prevalence of splenomegaly in both groups but hematocrit values rose to normal in the below 15 year olds using impregnated nets.

Full Text Available Abstract Background Malaria is a leading global cause of preventable morbidity and mortality, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, despite recent advances in treatment and prevention technologies. Scale-up and wide distribution of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLINs could rapidly decrease malarial disease in endemic areas, if used properly and continuously. Studies have shown that effective use of LLINs depends, in part, upon understanding causal factors associated with malaria. This study examined malaria beliefs, attitudes, and practices toward LLINs assessed during a large-scale integrated prevention campaign (IPC in rural Kenya. Methods Qualitative interviews were conducted with 34 IPC participants who received LLINs as part of a comprehensive prevention package of goods and services. One month after distribution, interviewers asked these individuals about their attitudes and beliefs regarding malaria, and about their use of LLINs. Results Virtually all participants noted that mosquitoes were involved in causing malaria, though a substantial proportion of participants (47 percent also mentioned an incorrect cause in addition to mosquitoes. For example, participants commonly noted that the weather (rain, cold or consumption of bad food and water caused malaria. Regardless, most participants used the LLINs they were given and most mentioned positive benefits from their use, namely reductions in malarial illness and in the costs associated with its diagnosis and treatment. Conclusions Attitudes toward LLINs were positive in this rural community in Western Kenya, and respondents noted benefits with LLIN use. With improved understanding and clarification of the direct (mosquitoes and indirect (e.g., standing water causes of malaria, it is likely that LLIN use can be sustained, offering effective household-level protection against malaria.

... page: //medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000581.htm Bed rest during pregnancy To use the sharing features on ... few days or weeks. This is called bed rest. Bed rest used to be recommended routinely for ...

This report describes a facility called NA-NET created to allow numerical analysts (na) an easy method of communicating with one another. The main advantage of the NA-NET is uniformity of addressing. All mail is addressed to the Internet host na-net.ornl.gov'' at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Hence, members of the NA-NET do not need to remember complicated addresses or even where a member is currently located. As long as moving members change their e-mail address in the NA-NET everything works smoothly. The NA-NET system is currently located at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. It is running on the same machine that serves netlib. Netlib is a separate facility that distributes mathematical software via electronic mail. For more information on netlib consult, or send the one-line message send index'' to netlib{at}ornl.gov. The following report describes the current NA-NET system from both a user's perspective and from an implementation perspective. Currently, there are over 2100 members in the NA-NET. An average of 110 mail messages pass through this facility daily.

This report describes a facility called NA-NET created to allow numerical analysts (na) an easy method of communicating with one another. The main advantage of the NA-NET is uniformity of addressing. All mail is addressed to the Internet host ``na-net.ornl.gov`` at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Hence, members of the NA-NET do not need to remember complicated addresses or even where a member is currently located. As long as moving members change their e-mail address in the NA-NET everything works smoothly. The NA-NET system is currently located at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. It is running on the same machine that serves netlib. Netlib is a separate facility that distributes mathematical software via electronic mail. For more information on netlib consult, or send the one-line message ``send index`` to netlib{at}ornl.gov. The following report describes the current NA-NET system from both a user`s perspective and from an implementation perspective. Currently, there are over 2100 members in the NA-NET. An average of 110 mail messages pass through this facility daily.

U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior — Net Ecosystem Carbon Flux is defined as the year-over-year change in Total Ecosystem Carbon Stock, or the net rate of carbon exchange between an ecosystem and the...

Comprehensive coverage to help experienced .NET developers create flexible, extensible enterprise application code If you're an experienced Microsoft .NET developer, you'll find in this book a road map to the latest enterprise development methodologies. It covers the tools you will use in addition to Visual Studio, including Spring.NET and nUnit, and applies to development with ASP.NET, C#, VB, Office (VBA), and database. You will find comprehensive coverage of the tools and practices that professional .NET developers need to master in order to build enterprise more flexible, testable, and ext

Coloured Petri nets (CP-nets) can be used for several fundamentally different purposes like functional analysis, performance analysis, and visualisation. To be able to use the corresponding tool extensions and libraries it is sometimes necessary to include extra auxiliary information in the CP-ne...... a certain use of the CP-net. We define the semantics of annotations by describing a translation from a CP-net and the corresponding annotation layers to another CP-net where the annotations are an integrated part of the CP-net....... a method which makes it possible to associate auxiliary information, called annotations, with tokens without modifying the colour sets of the CP-net. Annotations are pieces of information that are not essential for determining the behaviour of the system being modelled, but are rather added to support...

This paper describes how Coloured Petri Nets (CP-nets) have been developed — from being a promising theoretical model to being a full-fledged language for the design, specification, simulation, validation and implementation of large software systems (and other systems in which human beings and...... use of CP-nets — because it means that the function representation and the translations (which are a bit mathematically complex) no longer are parts of the basic definition of CP-nets. Instead they are parts of the invariant method (which anyway demands considerable mathematical skills...

Web services are poised to become a key technology for a wide range of Internet-enabled applications, spanning everything from straight B2B systems to mobile devices and proprietary in-house software. While there are several tools and platforms that can be used for building web services, developers are finding a powerful tool in Microsoft's .NET Framework and Visual Studio .NET. Designed from scratch to support the development of web services, the .NET Framework simplifies the process--programmers find that tasks that took an hour using the SOAP Toolkit take just minutes. Programming .NET

This paper introduces the notion of game coloured Petri nets. This allows the modeler to explicitly model what parts of the model comprise the modeled system and what parts are the environment of the modeled system. We give the formal definition of game coloured Petri nets, a means of reachability...... analysis of this net class, and an application of game coloured Petri nets to automatically generate easy-to-understand visualizations of the model by exploiting the knowledge that some parts of the model are not interesting from a visualization perspective (i.e. they are part of the environment...

... Are Here: Home → Multiple Languages → All Health Topics → Bed Bugs URL of this page: https://medlineplus.gov/languages/ ... V W XYZ List of All Topics All Bed Bugs - Multiple Languages To use the sharing features on ...

Bed bugs have long been a pest – feeding on blood, causing itchy bites and generally irritating their human hosts. They are successful hitchhikers, and can move from an infested site to furniture, bedding, baggage, boxes, and clothing.

... that there are ways to control bed bugs. Getting good, solid information is the first step in both prevention and control. While there is no chemical quick fix, there are effective strategies to control bed bugs involving both non-chemical and chemical methods. Bed bugs can be hard to find and ...

U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior — This is a shapefile and coverage showing the isopachs of total net coal in beds greater than or equal to 1.2' thick in the lower Blackhawk Formation, southern...

SolNet, founded in 2006, is the first coordinated International PhD education program on Solar Thermal Engineering. The SolNet network is coordinated by the Institute of Thermal Engineering at Kassel University, Germany. The network offers PhD courses on solar heating and cooling, conference...

Full Text Available Is it possible to develop a building that uses a net zero amount of water? In recent years it has become evident that it is possible to have buildings that use a net zero amount of electricity. This is possible when the building is taken off...

The Collaborative Strategy on Bed Bugs was developed by the Federal Bed Bug Workgroup to clarify the federal role in bed bug control and highlight ways that government, community, academia and private industry can work together on bed bug issues.

and identify possible renewable energy supply options which may be considered in calculations. Finally, the gap between the methodology proposed by each organisation and their respective national building code is assessed; providing an overview of the possible changes building codes will need to undergo......The international cooperation project IEA SHC Task 40 / ECBCS Annex 52 “Towards Net Zero Energy Solar Buildings”, attempts to develop a common understanding and to set up the basis for an international definition framework of Net Zero Energy Buildings (Net ZEBs). The understanding of such buildings...... and how the Net ZEB status should be calculated differs in most countries. This paper presents an overview of Net ZEBs energy calculation methodologies proposed by organisations representing eight different countries: Austria, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Norway, Switzerland and the USA. The different...

Full Text Available Neutrophils constitute a critical part of innate immunity and are well known for their ability to phagocytose and kill invading microorganisms. The microbicidal processes employed by neutrophils are highly effective at killing most ingested bacteria and fungi. However, an alternative non-phagocytic antimicrobial mechanism of neutrophils has been proposed whereby microorganisms are eliminated by neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs. NETs are comprised of DNA, histones, and antimicrobial proteins extruded by neutrophils during NETosis, a cell death pathway reported to be distinct from apoptosis, phagocytosis-induced cell death, and necrosis. Although multiple laboratories have reported NETs using various stimuli in vitro, the molecular mechanisms involved in this process have yet to be definitively elucidated, and many questions regarding the formation and putative role or function of NETs in innate host defense remain unanswered. It is with these questions in mind that we provide some reflection and perspective on NETs and NETosis.

Pro .NET Best Practices is a practical reference to the best practices that you can apply to your .NET projects today. You will learn standards, techniques, and conventions that are sharply focused, realistic and helpful for achieving results, steering clear of unproven, idealistic, and impractical recommendations. Pro .NET Best Practices covers a broad range of practices and principles that development experts agree are the right ways to develop software, which includes continuous integration, automated testing, automated deployment, and code analysis. Whether the solution is from a free and

The technology necessary to build net zero energy buildings (NZEBs) is ready and available today, however, building to net zero energy performance levels can be challenging. Energy efficiency measures, onsite energy generation resources, load matching and grid interaction, climatic factors, and local policies vary from location to location and require unique methods of constructing NZEBs. It is recommended that Components start looking into how to construct and operate NZEBs now as there is a learning curve to net zero construction and FY 2020 is just around the corner.

The international cooperation project IEA SHC Task 40 / ECBCS Annex 52 “Towards Net Zero Energy Solar Buildings”, attempts to develop a common understanding and to set up the basis for an international definition framework of Net Zero Energy Buildings (Net ZEBs). The understanding of such buildings...... and identify possible renewable energy supply options which may be considered in calculations. Finally, the gap between the methodology proposed by each organisation and their respective national building code is assessed; providing an overview of the possible changes building codes will need to undergo...

Occurrence nets are insufficient to precisely describe executions of elementary net systems with contacts.Traditionally,S-complementation is used for removal of contacts from the systems.Although the main behavior and properties of the original elementary net systems are preserved during S-complementation,their topologies may be changed greatly.This paper introduces a new kind of nets-expansion nets-for representing behavior of elementary net systems.As shown in the paper,expansion nets are natural as well as sufficient for describing the precise behavior of elementary net systems with or without contactks.

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — The PhysioNet Resource is intended to stimulate current research and new investigations in the study of complex biomedical and physiologic signals. It offers free...

Bestselling author Jesse Liberty and industry expert Alex Horovitz uncover the common threads that unite the .NET 3.5 technologies, so you can benefit from the best practices and architectural patterns baked into the new Microsoft frameworks. The book offers a Grand Tour" of .NET 3.5 that describes how the principal technologies can be used together, with Ajax, to build modern n-tier and service-oriented applications. "

This paper introduces the notion of game coloured Petri nets. This allows the modeler to explicitly model what parts of the model comprise the modeled system and what parts are the environment of the modeled system. We give the formal definition of game coloured Petri nets, a means of reachabilit......, and not controllable by the system itself, or they are part of the system itself and therefore we need not worry about them)....

Although the number of intensive care beds in the United States is increasing, little is known about the hospitals responsible for this growth. We sought to better characterize national growth in intensive care beds by identifying hospital-level factors associated with increasing numbers of intensive care beds over time. We performed a repeated-measures time series analysis of hospital-level intensive care bed supply using data from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. All United States acute care hospitals with adult intensive care beds over the years 1996-2011. None. None. We described the number of beds, teaching status, ownership, intensive care occupancy, and urbanicity for each hospital in each year of the study. We then examined the relationship between increasing intensive care beds and these characteristics, controlling for other factors. The study included 4,457 hospitals and 55,865 hospital-years. Overall, the majority of intensive care bed growth occurred in teaching hospitals (net, +13,471 beds; 72.1% of total growth), hospitals with 250 or more beds (net, +18,327 beds; 91.8% of total growth), and hospitals in the highest quartile of occupancy (net, +10,157 beds; 54.0% of total growth). In a longitudinal multivariable model, larger hospital size, teaching status, and high intensive care occupancy were associated with subsequent-year growth. Furthermore, the effects of hospital size and teaching status were modified by occupancy: the greatest odds of increasing ICU beds were in hospitals with 500 or more beds in the highest quartile of occupancy (adjusted odds ratio, 18.9; 95% CI, 14.0-25.5; p hospitals in the highest quartile of occupancy (adjusted odds ratio, 7.3; 95% CI, 5.3-9.9; p bed expansion in the United States is occurring in larger hospitals and teaching centers, particularly following a year with high ICU occupancy.

An apparatus for remotely calcining a slurry or solution feed stream of toxic or hazardous material, such as ammonium diurante slurry or uranyl nitrate solution, is disclosed. The calcining apparatus includes a vertical substantially cylindrical inner shell disposed in a vertical substantially cylindrical outer shell, in which inner shell is disposed a fluidized bed comprising the feed stream material to be calcined and spherical beads to aid in heat transfer. Extending through the outer and inner shells is a feed nozzle for delivering feed material or a cleaning chemical to the beads. Disposed in and extending across the lower portion of the inner shell and upstream of the fluidized bed is a support member for supporting the fluidized bed, the support member having uniform slots for directing uniform gas flow to the fluidized bed from a fluidizing gas orifice disposed upstream of the support member. Disposed in the lower portion of the inner shell are a plurality of internal electric resistance heaters for heating the fluidized bed. Disposed circumferentially about the outside length of the inner shell are a plurality of external heaters for heating the inner shell thereby heating the fluidized bed. Further, connected to the internal and external heaters is a means for maintaining the fluidized bed temperature to within plus or minus approximately 25.degree. C. of a predetermined bed temperature. Disposed about the external heaters is the outer shell for providing radiative heat reflection back to the inner shell.

Existing sediment continuity models for nonuniform sediment suffer from a number of shortcomings, as they fail to describe vertical sorting fluxes other than through net aggradation or degradation of the bed and are based on a discrete representation of the bed material interacting with the flow. We

use of CP-nets — because it means that the function representation and the translations (which are a bit mathematically complex) no longer are parts of the basic definition of CP-nets. Instead they are parts of the invariant method (which anyway demands considerable mathematical skills...... the different kinds of analysis. It has, however, turned out that it only is necessary to turn to functions when we deal with invariant analysis, and this means that we now use the expression representation for all purposes — except for the calculation of invariants. This change is important for the practical...

It was suggested some years ago that Petri nets might be well suited to modeling metabolic networks, overcoming some of the limitations encountered by the use of systems employing ODEs (ordinary differential equations). Much work has been done since then which confirms this and demonstrates the usefulness of this concept for systems biology. Petri net technology is not only intuitively understood by scientists trained in the life sciences, it also has a robust mathematical foundation and provides the required degree of flexibility. As a result it appears to be a very promising approach to mode

Does regulation of working hours at national and sector level impose straitjackets, or offer safety nets to employees seeking working time flexibility? This article compares legislation and collective agreements in the metal industries of Denmark, Germany and the USA. The industry has historically...

Annual population losses from net migration for nonmetro areas declined from 0.38-0.20 percent during the period of 1988-91. However, annual inmigration and outmigration flows were consistently above 1.5 million (about 3 percent of nonmetro population). During the three-year period, nonmetro areas consistently lost young adults and those with…

, that in turn enables general practitioners and clinical staff to view observations. Use the menus above to explore the site's information resources. To get started, follow the short Hello, World! tutorial. The Net4Care project is funded by The Central Denmark Region and EU via Caretech Innovation....

Coloured Petri Nets (CPN) is a graphical language for modelling and validating concurrent and distributed systems, and other systems in which concurrency plays a major role. This book introduces the constructs of the CPN modelling language and presents the related analysis methods. It provides a comprehensive road map for the practical use of CPN.

Mobile robot hardware and software is developing to the point where interesting applications for groups of such robots can be contemplated. We envision a set of mobots acting to map and perform surveillance or other task within an indoor environment (the Sense Net). A typical application of the Sense Net would be to detect survivors in buildings damaged by earthquake or other disaster, where human searchers would be put a risk. As a team, the Sense Net could reconnoiter a set of buildings faster, more reliably, and more comprehensibly than an individual mobot. The team, for example, could dynamically form subteams to perform task that cannot be done by individual robots, such as measuring the range to a distant object by forming a long baseline stereo sensor form a pari of mobots. In addition, the team could automatically reconfigure itself to handle contingencies such as disabled mobots. This paper is a report of our current progress in developing the Sense Net, after the first year of a two-year project. In our approach, each mobot has sufficient autonomy to perform several tasks, such as mapping unknown areas, navigating to specific positions, and detecting, tracking, characterizing, and classifying human and vehicular activity. We detail how some of these tasks are accomplished, and how the mobot group is tasked.

, that in turn enables general practitioners and clinical staff to view observations. Use the menus above to explore the site's information resources. To get started, follow the short Hello, World! tutorial. The Net4Care project is funded by The Central Denmark Region and EU via Caretech Innovation....

States making game theory relevant and accessible to students is challenging. Describes the primary goal of GameTheory.net is to provide interactive teaching tools. Indicates the site strives to unite educators from economics, political and computer science, and ecology by providing a repository of lecture notes and tests for courses using…

A vertically oriented conically shaped column is used as a fluidized bed bioreactor wherein biologically catalyzed reactions are conducted in a continuous manner. The column utilizes a packing material a support having attached thereto a biologically active catalytic material.

... Bed bugs have been found in five-star hotels and resorts and their presence is not determined ... sleep. These areas include apartments, shelters, rooming houses, hotels, cruise ships, buses, trains, and dorm rooms. They ...

The objective of this program is to develop mixed-metal oxide sorbent formulations that are suitable for moving-bed, high-temperature, desulfurization of coal gas. Work continues on zinc titanates formulations and Z-sorb III sorbent.

Its purpose is to help states, communities, and consumers in efforts to prevent and control bed bug infestations. Currently includes only reviewed material from federal/state/local government agencies, extension services, and universities.

The main objective of this study was to examine the turbulent flow field over gravel particles as a first step towards understanding sediment transport in a gravel bed river. Specifically, the vertical momentum flux in gravel bed turbulent flow was investigated with particular attention to the near-bed region. Spatial organization of vertical momentum flux was studied with stereoscopic Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) measurements in a horizontal layer 1mm above the gravel crests. The vertical momentum flux through the water column was described with digital PIV measurements in three vertical planes. The data showed that near the gravel bed, net turbulent momentum flux spatially varies with respect to bed topography. Analysis of the vertical velocity data revealed that near the gravel particle crests, there is a significant net vertical form-induced momentum flux approximately with the same order of magnitude as the net vertical turbulent momentum flux. Above the crests, total net vertical momentum flux is positive. However, below the crests, despite noticeable positive form-induced momentum flux, total net vertical momentum flux is negative. Results of quadrant analysis show that variation of turbulent net vertical momentum flux through water column is in agreement with prevalence of upward movement of low velocity flow (known as ejection) above gravel crests and downward movement of high velocity flow (known as sweep) below gravel crests. Below gravel crests (- 0.1 particles but their contribution is not sufficient to move fine particles in the longitudinal direction.

Institute (GTI) gasifier and Circulating Fluidized Bed (CFB) technologies are used for this quad generation process. Three different biomass feedstocks are considered in this study. The net energy ratio for six different pathways having the range of between 1.3–9.3. The lowest limit corresponds to the straw...... of the production and use of biomass for different outputs based on demand. Finally, we conduct sensitivity analysis for expected technological improvements and factors that could increase the energy performance....

Although hospital-owned primary care practices have been unprofitable for most hospitals, some hospitals are achieving competitive advantage and sustainable practice operations. A key to the success of some has been a net income reporting tool that separates practice operating expenses from the costs of creating and operating a network of practices to help healthcare organization managers, physicians, and staff to identify opportunities to improve the network's financial performance. This "Net One, Net Two" reporting allows operations leadership to be held accountable for Net One expenses and strategic leadership to be held accountable for Net Two expenses.

This book investigates the possible linguistic applications of proof nets, redundancy free representations of proofs, which were introduced by Girard for linear logic. We will adapt the notion of proof net to allow the formulation of a proof net calculus which is soundand complete for the multimoda

Objective:To evaluate relationship betweenα-cypermethrin residues in Interceptor® nets by using HPTLC methods and mortality percentage in standardWHO's method "cone test" after repeated washings.Methods: Interceptor® containing 毩-cypermethrin was provided byBASF Company. The washing procedure and bioassay tests were carried out according to theWHO-recommended methods. Malaria vector, An. stephensi was exposed to impregnated bednet for three minutes and then mortality measured after24 hour recovery period. Chemical analysis was carried out in chemical laboratory by using high performance thin layer chromatography method.Results:Result of cone bioassay method showed that washing reduced the efficacy of Interceptor® bednet from100% in unwashed nets to15% at20 washes. After 20 washes, nets contain (61.2±2.8)mg/m2resulting15%mortality in cone test. Killing activity was reduced when nets were washed.Conclusions:Results will provide an essential clue for monitoring and evaluation of bioefficacy of any long lasting impregnated bednet for quality control. Findings of this study will be useful forWHO, local investigators and people who wish to use pyrethroid-impregnated bednets for malaria vector control.

of an existing Internet radio station; Boom Booom Net Radio. Whilst necessity dictates some use of technology-related terminology, wherever possible we have endeavoured to keep such jargon to a minimum and to either explain it in the text or to provide further explanation in the appended glossary.......Internet radio is one of the growth areas of the Internet but, as this article will show, is fraught with difficulties and frustration for both the modestly-funded broadcaster (bitcaster) and the listener. The article will illustrate some of these problems by means of a short case study...

Does regulation of working hours at national and sector level impose straitjackets, or offer safety nets to employees seeking working time flexibility? This article compares legislation and collective agreements in the metal industries of Denmark, Germany and the USA. The industry has historically...... been trend-setting for collective bargaining in all three countries, but with very different effects on working time. Organized decentralization seems to pave the way for fewer straitjackets, whereas the opposite seems to be the case with regard to disorganized decentralization....

Full Text Available The main goal of the MASTER-Net project is to produce a unique fast sky survey with all sky observed over a single night down to a limiting magnitude of 19-20. Such a survey will make it possible to address a number of fundamental problems: search for dark energy via the discovery and photometry of supernovae (including SNIa, search for exoplanets, microlensing effects, discovery of minor bodies in the Solar System, and space-junk monitoring. All MASTER telescopes can be guided by alerts, and we plan to observe prompt optical emission from gamma-ray bursts synchronously in several filters and in several polarization planes.

to their work can be found in the individual papers and in the available bibliographies of Petri nets, e.g., Stefan Dress et. al: Bibliography of Petri Nets. In: G. Rozenberg (ed.): Advances in Petri Nets 1987, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol. 266, Springer-Verlag 1987, 309-451. Updated versions...... of this bibliography will appear in Advances of Petri Nets with regular intervals. In the preparation of the book the editors have been assisted by an advisory board consisting of the following well-known Petri net researchers: M. Ajmone-Marsan, H.J. Genrich, C. Girault, W. Reisig, M. Silva and P.S. Thiagarajan...

Full Text Available Abstract A recent study in BMC Biology has determined that the immature stage of the bed bug (the nymph signals its reproductive status to adult males using pheromones and thus avoids the trauma associated with copulation in this species. The success of this nymphal strategy of deterrence is instructive. Against the background of increasing problems with bed bugs, this research raises the question whether pheromones might be used to control them. See research article http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7007/8/121

Full Text Available Samples of active coke, fresh and spent after cleaning flue gases from communal waste incinerators, were investigated. The outer layers of both coke particles were separately removed by comminution in a spouted bed. The samples of both active cokes were analysed by means of densities, mercury porosimetry, and adsorption technique. Remaining cores were examined to determine the degree of consumption of coke by the sorption of hazardous emissions (SO2, HCl, and heavy metals through its bed. Differences in contamination levels within the porous structure of the particles were estimated. The study demonstrated the effectiveness of commercial active coke in the cleaning of flue gases.

To explore the safety of the standard and the low hospital bed, we report on a microanalysis of 15 patients’ ability to ingress, move about the bed, and egress. The 15 participants were purposefully selected with various disabilities. Bed conditions were randomized with side rails up or down and one low bed with side rails down. We explored the patients’ use of the side rails, bed height, ability to lift their legs onto the mattress, and ability to turn, egress, and walk back to the chair. The standard bed was too high for some participants, both for ingress and egress. Side rails were used by most participants when entering, turning in bed, and exiting. We recommend that side rails be reconsidered as a means to facilitate in-bed movement, ingress, and egress. Furthermore, single deck height settings for all patients are not optimal. Low beds as a safety measure must be re-evaluated. PMID:28462302

Full Text Available The aim of this paper was to investigate the radiometric properties of coloured nets used to protect a peach cultivation. The modifications of the solar spectral distribution, mainly in the R and FR wavelength band, influence plant photomorphogenesis by means of the phytochrome and cryptochrome. The phytochrome response is characterized in terms of radiation rate in the red wavelengths (R, 600-700 nm to that in the farred radiation (FR, 700-800 nm, i.e. the R/FR ratio. The effects of the blue radiation (B, 400-500 nm is investigated by the ratio between the blue radiation and the far-red radiation, i.e. the B/FR ratio. A BLUE net, a RED net, a YELLOW net, a PEARL net, a GREY net and a NEUTRAL net were tested in Bari (Italy, latitude 41° 05’ N. Peach trees were located in pots inside the greenhouses and in open field. The growth of the trees cultivated in open field was lower in comparison to the growth of the trees grown under the nets. The RED, PEARL, YELLOW and GREY nets increased the growth of the trees more than the other nets. The nets positively influenced the fruit characteristics, such as fruit weight and flesh firmness.

Household ownership of insecticide-treated mosquito nets (ITNs) is increasing, and coverage targets have been revised to address universal coverage with ITNs. However, many households do not have enough nets to cover everyone, and the nets available vary in physical condition and insecticide treatment status. Since 2004, the Government of Tanzania has been implementing the Tanzania National Voucher Scheme (TNVS), which distributes vouchers for ITNs through antenatal clinics to target pregnant women and their infants. This analysis aimed to determine the following: (1) coverage patterns of bednets within households according to physical condition and treatment status; (2) who might be at risk if mosquitoes were diverted from occupants of untreated nets to those not using nets? (3) the degree to which those at highest risk of malaria use the most protective nets. Data from the 2006 TNVS household survey were analysed to assess within-household distribution of net use. The associations between net characteristics and net user were also evaluated. Multivariate analysis was applied to the relationship between the number of holes per net and user characteristics while adjusting for confounders. In households with a net:person ratio better than 1:4 (one net for every four household members), more than 80% of the people in such households reported using a net the previous night. ITNs were most likely to be used by infants, young children (1-4 y), and women of childbearing age; they were least likely to be used by older women (>or=50 y), older children (5-14 y), and adult men. The nets used by infants and women of childbearing age were in better-than-average physical condition; the nets used by older women and older children were in worse-than-average condition; while young children and adult men used nets in intermediate (average) condition. When adjusted for confounders, the nets used by young and older children had more holes than nets used by infants. Infants and other

Full Text Available Abstract Background Household ownership of insecticide-treated mosquito nets (ITNs is increasing, and coverage targets have been revised to address universal coverage with ITNs. However, many households do not have enough nets to cover everyone, and the nets available vary in physical condition and insecticide treatment status. Since 2004, the Government of Tanzania has been implementing the Tanzania National Voucher Scheme (TNVS, which distributes vouchers for ITNs through antenatal clinics to target pregnant women and their infants. This analysis aimed to determine the following: (1 coverage patterns of bednets within households according to physical condition and treatment status; (2 who might be at risk if mosquitoes were diverted from occupants of untreated nets to those not using nets? (3 the degree to which those at highest risk of malaria use the most protective nets. Methods Data from the 2006 TNVS household survey were analysed to assess within-household distribution of net use. The associations between net characteristics and net user were also evaluated. Multivariate analysis was applied to the relationship between the number of holes per net and user characteristics while adjusting for confounders. Results In households with a net:person ratio better than 1:4 (one net for every four household members, more than 80% of the people in such households reported using a net the previous night. ITNs were most likely to be used by infants, young children (1-4 y, and women of childbearing age; they were least likely to be used by older women (≥50 y, older children (5-14 y, and adult men. The nets used by infants and women of childbearing age were in better-than-average physical condition; the nets used by older women and older children were in worse-than-average condition; while young children and adult men used nets in intermediate (average condition. When adjusted for confounders, the nets used by young and older children had more holes

A multistage fluidized bed reactor is described in which each of a number of stages is arranged with respect to an associated baffle so that a fluidizing gas flows upward and a granular solid downward through the stages and baffles, whereas the granular solid stopsflowing downward when the flow of fluidizing gas is shut off.

The chamber is confined in a pressure vessel. The lower part of the chamber has tilted parallel gutters up to the height of the fluidized bed. The slope of the gutter walls is 5 degrees-15 degrees and the top area of the gutters is 1.3 to 3 times larger than their bottom.

Learn the truth about bed bugs, such as how easy they are to see with the naked eye, their preferred habitat, whether they transmit diseases, their public health effects, and whether pesticides are the best way to deal with an infestation.

The seminar Art|Net|Work deals with two important changes in our culture. On one side, the network has become essential in the latest technological development. The Internet has entered a new phase, Web 2.0, including the occurrence of as ‘Wiki’s’, ‘Peer-2-Peer’ distribution, user controlled...... taxonomies (‘Folksonomy’) and ‘Weblogs’. Also, platforms, programming and software are today very often created in open communities – as seen in the ‘Free/Open Source’ movement. On the other side, following the technological development, the network also has become essential in the art sphere. Artists focus...... on the ‘network’ itself as a phenomenon and are often using technological networks as a mean of production and distribution. This changes the artistic practice and the distribution channels of art works – and the traditional notions of ‘work’, ‘origin’ and ‘rights’ are increasingly perceived as limiting...

Internet radio is one of the growth areas of the Internet but, as this article will show, is fraught with difficulties and frustration for both the modestly-funded broadcaster (bitcaster) and the listener. The article will illustrate some of these problems by means of a short case study of an exi......Internet radio is one of the growth areas of the Internet but, as this article will show, is fraught with difficulties and frustration for both the modestly-funded broadcaster (bitcaster) and the listener. The article will illustrate some of these problems by means of a short case study...... of an existing Internet radio station; Boom Booom Net Radio. Whilst necessity dictates some use of technology-related terminology, wherever possible we have endeavoured to keep such jargon to a minimum and to either explain it in the text or to provide further explanation in the appended glossary....

... medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000427.htm Bathing a patient in bed To use the sharing features on this page, please enable JavaScript. Some patients cannot safely leave their beds to bathe. For ...

Department of Veterans Affairs — The VA National Bed Control System records the levels of operating, unavailable and authorized beds at each VAMC, and it tracks requests for changes in these levels....

Objective: To evaluate the bioefficacy of α-cypermethrin impregnated into long lasting insecticide treated nets (LLITNs- INTERCEPTOR®) against main malaria vector, Anopheles stephensi (An. stephensi). Methods: The effectiveness of bednet impregnated withα-cypermethrin (INTERCEPTOR®) with washing was evaluated. The washing procedure and bioassay tests were carried out according to the WHO-recommended methods. Malaria vector, An. stephensi was exposed to impregnated bednet for three minutes and then mortality measured after 24 h recovery period. Knockdown was also measured according to the logarithmic times. Results:Result of cone bioassay method showed that bioefficacy ofα-cypermethrin decreased from 100%in unwashed to 15%in 20 washes. KT50 was measure as one minute in one wash and increased to 40 min in 20 washes. Discussion: Findings of this study provide guideline for malaria vector control authorities and people using pyrethroid-impregnated bednets.

This Wrox Blox is for .NET developers who already have experiencedeveloping web applications with ASP.NET MVC and want to learn thenew features introduced in the new release of ASP.NET MVC. ASP.NETMVC 2 has been built with the goal to increase productivity andmake ASP.NET MVC ready for enterprise development. This Wrox Bloxguides the reader through the new features by explaining how to usedata scaffolding and automatic validation, how to write customvalidators, how to create multi-area projects, and how and when touse async controllers. It also covers the new automatic HTMLEncoding feature int

Creep data from the literature search is reinterpreted by SGI, resulting in a better understanding of the temperature and stress state dependence of the octahedral creep rate and the octahedral shear strength. The concept of a transition strength between the elastic and the plastic states is in agreement with the data. The elastic and rheological properties of salt are described, and a set of constitutive equations is presented. The dependence of material properties on parameters such as temperature is considered. Findings on the permeability of salt are summarized, and the in-situ behavior of openings in bedded salt is described based on extensive engineering experience. A stress measuring system utilizing a finite element computer code is discussed. Geological factors affecting the stability of salt openings are considered, and the Stress Control Technique for designing stable openings in bedded salt formations is explained.

project is to develop a benchmark system for evaluating models for predicting the characteristics of ocean wind waves. SCIENTIFIC OBJECTIVES A...transformation-scale models (i.e. models which treat the physics of waves propagating from offshore areas into the coastline). Each phase is further divided...to be assembled within the virtual test bed. Wind fields for running these tests will be obtained from Oceanweather, Inc. from a separate ONR

Full Text Available The complexity of the study of tropospheric ozone lies in the fact that it is a secondary pollutant. It is not emitted by a source, instead its concentration in the air depends on other compounds (especially the nitrogen oxides emitted by motor vehicles and the volatile organic compounds emitted by the industry and the vegetation and meteorological factors (especially solar radiation and temperature. The European legislation compells to make measurements of the tropospheric ozone due to its effects on people (fatigue, irritation of the mucous membranes, aggravation of asthma ... and on environment (decrease of the production of cereals, synergy with plagues .... The measuring net in Catalonia belongs to the Department of Environment and Housing (DMAH. It has a pyramidal structure and it allows a surveillance to notify in case of exceeding a certain threshold. From the registered data of last years it is shown that the number of incidences is related to meteorology. They are more frequent during afternoon and the behaviour of this pollutant is different according to the proximity of the point of measurement to the sources of its precursors.

The Net4Care platform provides the ability to quickly create quality tele-health applications interfacing with HL7 and IHE/XDS. Net4Care features a modular server- and client-side based on OSGi and aims at providing support for a telemedicine software ecosystem. A typical deployment scenario is a...

This article shows how individual Petri nets form models of Girard's intuitionistic linear logic. It explores questions of expressiveness and completeness of linear logic with respect to this interpretation. An aim is to use Petri nets to give an understanding of linear logic and give some apprai...

Full Text Available A universal deterministic inhibitor Petri net with 14 places, 29 transitions and 138 arcs was constructed via simulation of Neary and Woods' weakly universal Turing machine with 2 states and 4 symbols; the total time complexity is exponential in the running time of their weak machine. To simulate the blank words of the weakly universal Turing machine, a couple of dedicated transitions insert their codes when reaching edges of the working zone. To complete a chain of a given Petri net encoding to be executed by the universal Petri net, a translation of a bi-tag system into a Turing machine was constructed. The constructed Petri net is universal in the standard sense; a weaker form of universality for Petri nets was not introduced in this work.

Full Text Available Level Petri Nets are formalism for modeling hierarchical multi-agent system. They are a Petri nets extension, allowing tokens to be nets themselves. This paper is inspired by two classes of level Petri nets: object Petri nets and nested Petri nets. We present some concepts from the artificial intelligence field and we use them to illustrate the modeling power of Petri nets with multi levels.

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: While coverage of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLIN has steadily increased, a growing number of studies report gaps between net ownership and use. We conducted a mixed-methods social science study assessing the importance of net preference and use after Olyset® LLINs were distributed through a mass campaign in rural communities surrounding Iquitos, the capital city of the Amazonian region of Peru. METHODS: The study was conducted in the catchment area of the Paujil and Cahuide Health Centres (San Juan district between July 2007 and November 2008. During a first qualitative phase, participant observation and in-depth interviews collected information on key determinants for net preference and use. In a second quantitative phase, a survey among recently confirmed malaria patients evaluated the acceptability and use of both LLINs and traditional nets, and a case control study assessed the association between net preference/use and housing structure (open vs. closed houses. RESULTS: A total of 10 communities were selected for the anthropological fieldwork and 228 households participated in the quantitative studies. In the study area, bednets are considered part of the housing structure and are therefore required to fulfil specific architectural and social functions, such as providing privacy and shelter, which the newly distributed Olyset® LLINs ultimately did not. The LLINs' failure to meet these criteria could mainly be attributed to their large mesh size, transparency and perceived ineffectiveness to protect against mosquitoes and other insects, resulting in 63.3% of households not using any of the distributed LLINs. Notably, LLIN usage was significantly lower in houses with no interior or exterior walls (35.2% than in those with walls (73.8% (OR = 5.2, 95CI [2.2; 12.3], p<0.001. CONCLUSION: Net preference can interfere with optimal LLIN use. In order to improve the number of effective days of LLIN protection per dollar

Background While coverage of long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLIN) has steadily increased, a growing number of studies report gaps between net ownership and use. We conducted a mixed-methods social science study assessing the importance of net preference and use after Olyset® LLINs were distributed through a mass campaign in rural communities surrounding Iquitos, the capital city of the Amazonian region of Peru. Methods The study was conducted in the catchment area of the Paujil and Cahuide Health Centres (San Juan district) between July 2007 and November 2008. During a first qualitative phase, participant observation and in-depth interviews collected information on key determinants for net preference and use. In a second quantitative phase, a survey among recently confirmed malaria patients evaluated the acceptability and use of both LLINs and traditional nets, and a case control study assessed the association between net preference/use and housing structure (open vs. closed houses). Results A total of 10 communities were selected for the anthropological fieldwork and 228 households participated in the quantitative studies. In the study area, bednets are considered part of the housing structure and are therefore required to fulfil specific architectural and social functions, such as providing privacy and shelter, which the newly distributed Olyset® LLINs ultimately did not. The LLINs' failure to meet these criteria could mainly be attributed to their large mesh size, transparency and perceived ineffectiveness to protect against mosquitoes and other insects, resulting in 63.3% of households not using any of the distributed LLINs. Notably, LLIN usage was significantly lower in houses with no interior or exterior walls (35.2%) than in those with walls (73.8%) (OR = 5.2, 95CI [2.2; 12.3], p<0.001). Conclusion Net preference can interfere with optimal LLIN use. In order to improve the number of effective days of LLIN protection per dollar spent

Bed humidity is a critical parameter that needs to be controlled in a fluidized bed granulation to ensure reliability. To predict and control the bed humidity during the fluidized bed granulation process, a simple model based on the mass conservation of moisture was developed. The moisture mass balance model quantitatively simulates the effects of spray rate, binder solution concentration, airflow rate, inlet air temperature, and dew point on the bed humidity. The model was validated by a series of granulations performed in different scale granulators including Glatt GPCG-1, GPCG-15, and GPCG-60. Good agreement was observed between the theoretical prediction and the measured loss on drying (LOD). The model developed in the current work enables us to choose the appropriate parameters for the fluidized bed granulation and can be used as a valuable tool in process scaling-up.

During the second half of the 1990's Coal Bed Methane (CBM) production increased dramatically nationwide to represent a significant new source of income and natural gas for many independent and established producers. Matching these soaring production rates during this period was a heightened public awareness of environmental concerns. These concerns left unexplained and under-addressed have created a significant growth in public involvement generating literally thousands of unfocused project comments for various regional NEPA efforts resulting in the delayed development of public and fee lands. The accelerating interest in CBM development coupled to the growth in public involvement has prompted the conceptualization of this project for the development of a CBM Primer. The Primer is designed to serve as a summary document, which introduces and encapsulates information pertinent to the development of Coal Bed Methane (CBM), including focused discussions of coal deposits, methane as a natural formed gas, split mineral estates, development techniques, operational issues, producing methods, applicable regulatory frameworks, land and resource management, mitigation measures, preparation of project plans, data availability, Indian Trust issues and relevant environmental technologies. An important aspect of gaining access to federal, state, tribal, or fee lands involves education of a broad array of stakeholders, including land and mineral owners, regulators, conservationists, tribal governments, special interest groups, and numerous others that could be impacted by the development of coal bed methane. Perhaps the most crucial aspect of successfully developing CBM resources is stakeholder education. Currently, an inconsistent picture of CBM exists. There is a significant lack of understanding on the parts of nearly all stakeholders, including industry, government, special interest groups, and land owners. It is envisioned the Primer would being used by a variety of

A major debilitating response from prolonged bed rest (BR) is muscle atrophy, defined as a "decrease in size of a part of tissue after full development has been attained: a wasting away of tissue as from disuse, old age, injury or disease". Part of the complicated mechanism for the dizziness, increased body instability, and exaggerated gait in patients who arise immediately after BR may be a result of not only foot pain, but also of muscular atrophy and associated reduction in lower limb strength. Also, there seems to be a close association between muscle atrophy and bone atrophy. A discussion of many facets of the total BR homeostatic syndrome has been published. The old adage that use determines form which promotes function of bone (Wolff's law) also applies to those people exposed to prolonged BR (without exercise training) in whom muscle atrophy is a consistent finding. An extreme case involved a 16-year-old boy who was ordered to bed by his mother in 1932: after 50 years in bed he had "a lily-white frame with limbs as thin as the legs of a ladder-back chair". These findings emphasize the close relationship between muscle atrophy and bone atrophy. In addition to loss of muscle mass during deconditioning, there is a significant loss of muscle strength and a decrease in protein synthesis. Because the decreases in force (strength) are proportionately greater than those in fiber size or muscle cross-sectional area, other contributory factors must be involved; muscle fiber dehydration may be important.

A major debilitating response from prolonged bed rest (BR) is muscle atrophy, defined as a "decrease in size of a part of tissue after full development has been attained: a wasting away of tissue as from disuse, old age, injury or disease". Part of the complicated mechanism for the dizziness, increased body instability, and exaggerated gait in patients who arise immediately after BR may be a result of not only foot pain, but also of muscular atrophy and associated reduction in lower limb strength. Also, there seems to be a close association between muscle atrophy and bone atrophy. A discussion of many facets of the total BR homeostatic syndrome has been published. The old adage that use determines form which promotes function of bone (Wolff's law) also applies to those people exposed to prolonged BR (without exercise training) in whom muscle atrophy is a consistent finding. An extreme case involved a 16-year-old boy who was ordered to bed by his mother in 1932: after 50 years in bed he had "a lily-white frame with limbs as thin as the legs of a ladder-back chair". These findings emphasize the close relationship between muscle atrophy and bone atrophy. In addition to loss of muscle mass during deconditioning, there is a significant loss of muscle strength and a decrease in protein synthesis. Because the decreases in force (strength) are proportionately greater than those in fiber size or muscle cross-sectional area, other contributory factors must be involved; muscle fiber dehydration may be important.

No one knows when the people ofMacheng City began to employthe marriage custom of racingfor the bed, once a custom unique to theTujia ethnic minority. It is said that at the end of awedding, bride and bridegroom enter thebridal chamber together and race for thebed. The one who is the first to sit on thebed will be the master of the new familyIt sounds unreasonable, but quite anumber of people believe in it.Therefore, on the wedding night, manybrides and bridegrooms try their best to

A fluidized bed reactor system which utilizes a fluid phase, a retained fluidized primary particulate phase, and a migratory second particulate phase is described. The primary particulate phase is a particle such as a gel bead containing an immobilized biocatalyst. The secondary particulate phase, continuously introduced and removed in either cocurrent or countercurrent mode, acts in a secondary role such as a sorbent to continuously remove a product or by-product constituent from the fluid phase. Introduction and removal of the sorbent phase is accomplished through the use of feed screw mechanisms and multivane slurry valves. 3 figures.

U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior — This as a shapefile and coverage showing the isopachs of total net coal in beds greater than 1.2' thick for the Fruitland Formation, San Juan Basin, Colorado and New...

The net current (streaming) in a turbulent bottom boundary layer under waves above a flat bed, identified as potentially relevant for sediment transport, is mainly determined by two competing mechanisms: an onshore streaming resulting from the horizontal non-uniformity of the velocity field under pr

The net current (streaming) in a turbulent bottom boundary layer under waves above a flat bed, identified as potentially relevant for sediment transport, is mainly determined by two competing mechanisms: an onshore streaming resulting from the horizontal non-uniformity of the velocity field under

The net current (streaming) in a turbulent bottom boundary layer under waves above a flat bed, identified as potentially relevant for sediment transport, is mainly determined by two competing mechanisms: an onshore streaming resulting from the horizontal non-uniformity of the velocity field under pr

U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior — These are shapefiles and ARC/INFO polygon coverages showing the isopachs of total net coal in beds greater than or equal to 1 ft thick for the Cameo/Fairfield coal...

Full Text Available Abstract Background Insecticide-treated bednets (ITN provide real hope for the reduction of the malaria burden across Africa. Understanding factors that determine access to ITN is crucial to debates surrounding the optimal delivery systems. The influence of homestead wealth on use of nets purchased from the retail sector is well documented, however, the competing influence of mother's education and physical access to net providers is less well understood. Methods Between December 2004 and January 2005, a random sample of 72 rural communities was selected across four Kenyan districts. Demographic, assets, education and net use data were collected at homestead, mother and child (aged Results Homestead heads and guardians of 3,755 children Conclusion Approaches to promoting access to nets through the retail sector disadvantage poor and remote communities where mothers are less well educated.

Conformal nets provide a mathematical formalism for conformal field theory. Associated to a conformal net with finite index, we give a construction of the `bundle of conformal blocks', a representation of the mapping class groupoid of closed topological surfaces into the category of finite-dimensional projective Hilbert spaces. We also construct infinite-dimensional spaces of conformal blocks for topological surfaces with smooth boundary. We prove that the conformal blocks satisfy a factorization formula for gluing surfaces along circles, and an analogous formula for gluing surfaces along intervals. We use this interval factorization property to give a new proof of the modularity of the category of representations of a conformal net.

Pro Asynchronous Programming with .NET teaches the essential skill of asynchronous programming in .NET. It answers critical questions in .NET application development, such as: how do I keep my program responding at all times to keep my users happy how do I make the most of the available hardware how can I improve performanceIn the modern world, users expect more and more from their applications and devices, and multi-core hardware has the potential to provide it. But it takes carefully crafted code to turn that potential into responsive, scalable applications.With Pro Asynchronous Programming

Conformal nets provide a mathematical formalism for conformal field theory. Associated to a conformal net with finite index, we give a construction of the `bundle of conformal blocks', a representation of the mapping class groupoid of closed topological surfaces into the category of finite-dimensional projective Hilbert spaces. We also construct infinite-dimensional spaces of conformal blocks for topological surfaces with smooth boundary. We prove that the conformal blocks satisfy a factorization formula for gluing surfaces along circles, and an analogous formula for gluing surfaces along intervals. We use this interval factorization property to give a new proof of the modularity of the category of representations of a conformal net.

This paper discusses the use of Petri nets as a semantic tool in the design of languages and in the construction and analysis of system descriptions. The topics treated are: Languages based on nets. The problem of time in nets. Nets and related models. Nets and formal semantics. Parallel program...

KM3NeT is a large scale next-generation neutrino telescope located in the deep waters of the Mediterranean Sea, optimized for the discovery of galactic neutrino sources emitting in the TeV energy region.

Although several alternative definitions exist, a Net-Zero Energy Building (Net ZEB) can be succinctly described as a grid-connected building that generates as much energy as it uses over a year. The “net-zero” balance is attained by applying energy conservation and efficiency measures...... and by incorporating renewable energy systems. While based on annual balances, a complete description of a Net ZEB requires examining the system at smaller time-scales. This assessment should address: (a) the relationship between power generation and building loads and (b) the resulting interaction with the power grid....... This paper presents and categorizes quantitative indicators suitable to describe both aspects of the building’s performance. These indicators, named LMGI - Load Matching and Grid Interaction indicators, are easily quantifiable and could complement the output variables of existing building simulation tools...

Although several alternative definitions exist, a Net-Zero Energy Building (Net ZEB) can be succinctly described as a grid-connected building that generates as much energy as it uses over a year. The “net-zero” balance is attained by applying energy conservation and efficiency measures...... and by incorporating renewable energy systems. While based on annual balances, a complete description of a Net ZEB requires examining the system at smaller time-scales. This assessment should address: (a) the relationship between power generation and building loads and (b) the resulting interaction with the power grid....... This paper presents and categorizes quantitative indicators suitable to describe both aspects of the building’s performance. These indicators, named LMGI - Load Matching and Grid Interaction indicators, are easily quantifiable and could complement the output variables of existing building simulation tools...

This paper explores several extensions of proof nets for the Lambek calculus in order to handle the different connectives of display logic in a natural way. The new proof net calculus handles some recent additions to the Lambek vocabulary such as Galois connections and Grishin interactions. It concludes with an exploration of the generative capacity of the Lambek-Grishin calculus, presenting an embedding of lexicalized tree adjoining grammars into the Lambek-Grishin calculus.

The Net Reclassification Index (NRI) is a very popular measure for evaluating the improvement in prediction performance gained by adding a marker to a set of baseline predictors. However, the statistical properties of this novel measure have not been explored in depth. We demonstrate the alarming...... performance improvement, such as measures derived from the receiver operating characteristic curve, the net benefit function, and the Brier score, cannot be large due to poorly fitting risk functions....

This paper provides an overview of the characteristics of all currently available net based tools. It is a compilation of information provided by tool authors or contact persons. A concise one page overview is provided as well.......This paper provides an overview of the characteristics of all currently available net based tools. It is a compilation of information provided by tool authors or contact persons. A concise one page overview is provided as well....

To describe the dynamic semantics for the network computing, the concept on process is presented based on the semantic model with variable, resource and relation. Accordingly, the formal definition of process and the mapping rules from the specification of Petri nets extension to process are discussed in detail respectively. Based on the collective concepts of process, the specification of dynamic semantics also is constructed as a net system. Finally, to illustrate process intuitively, an example is specified completely.

Full Text Available Drag force at the bed acting on water flow is a major control on water circulation and sediment transport. Bed drag has been thoroughly studied in sandy waters, but less so in muddy coastal waters. The variation of bed drag on a muddy shelf is investigated here using field observations of currents, waves, and sediment concentration collected during moderate wind and wave events. To estimate bottom shear stress and the bed drag coefficient, an indirect empirical method of logarithmic fitting to current velocity profiles (log-law, a bottom boundary layer model for combined wave-current flow, and a direct method that uses turbulent fluctuations of velocity are used. The overestimation by the log-law is significantly reduced by taking turbulence suppression due to sediment-induced stratification into account. The best agreement between the model and the direct estimates is obtained by using a hydraulic roughness of 10 - 4 m in the model. Direct estimate of bed drag on the muddy bed is found to have a decreasing trend with increasing current speed, and is estimated to be around 0.0025 in conditions where wave-induced flow is relatively weak. Bed drag shows an increase (up to fourfold with increasing wave energy. These findings can be used to test the bed drag parameterizations in hydrodynamic and sediment transport models and the skills of these models in predicting flows in muddy environments.

Drag force at the bed acting on water flow is a major control on water circulation and sediment transport. Bed drag has been thoroughly studied in sandy waters, but less so in muddy coastal waters. The variation of bed drag on a muddy shelf is investigated here using field observations of currents, waves, and sediment concentration collected during moderate wind and wave events. To estimate bottom shear stress and the bed drag coefficient, an indirect empirical method of logarithmic fitting to current velocity profiles (log-law), a bottom boundary layer model for combined wave-current flow, and a direct method that uses turbulent fluctuations of velocity are used. The overestimation by the log-law is significantly reduced by taking turbulence suppression due to sediment-induced stratification into account. The best agreement between the model and the direct estimates is obtained by using a hydraulic roughness of 10 m in the model. Direct estimate of bed drag on the muddy bed is found to have a decreasing trend with increasing current speed, and is estimated to be around 0.0025 in conditions where wave-induced flow is relatively weak. Bed drag shows an increase (up to fourfold) with increasing wave energy. These findings can be used to test the bed drag parameterizations in hydrodynamic and sediment transport models and the skills of these models in predicting flows in muddy environments.

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: There have been resurgent efforts in Africa to estimate the public health impact of malaria control interventions such as insecticide treated nets (ITNs following substantial investments in scaling-up coverage in the last five years. Little is known, however, on the effectiveness of ITN in areas of Africa that support low transmission. This hinders the accurate estimation of impact of ITN use on disease burden and its cost-effectiveness in low transmission settings. METHODS AND PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Using a stratified two-stage cluster sample design, four cross-sectional studies were undertaken between March-June 2007 across three livelihood groups in an area of low intensity malaria transmission in South Central Somalia. Information on bednet use; age; and sex of all participants were recorded. A finger prick blood sample was taken from participants to examine for parasitaemia. Mantel-Haenzel methods were used to measure the effect of net use on parasitaemia adjusting for livelihood; age; and sex. A total of 10,587 individuals of all ages were seen of which 10,359 provided full information. Overall net use and parasite prevalence were 12.4% and 15.7% respectively. Age-specific protective effectiveness (PE of bednet ranged from 39% among <5 years to 72% among 5-14 years old. Overall PE of bednets was 54% (95% confidence interval 44%-63% after adjusting for livelihood; sex; and age. CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE: Bednets confer high protection against parasite infection in South Central Somalia. In such areas where baseline transmission is low, however, the absolute reductions in parasitaemia due to wide-scale net use will be relatively small raising questions on the cost-effectiveness of covering millions of people living in such settings in Africa with nets. Further understanding of the progress of disease upon infection against the cost of averting its consequent burden in low transmission areas of Africa is therefore required.

Full Text Available We apply a three-dimensional hydrodynamic model to consider the potential effects of energy extraction by an array of tidal turbines on the ambient near-bed velocity field and local bed shear stress in a coastal channel with strong tidal currents. Local bed shear stress plays a key role in local sediment dynamics. The model solves the Reynold-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS equations on an unstructured mesh using mixed finite element and finite volume techniques. Tidal turbines are represented through an additional form drag in the momentum balance equation, with the thrust imparted and power generated by the turbines being velocity dependent with appropriate cut-in and cut-out velocities. Arrays of 1, 4 and 57 tidal turbines, each of 1.5 MW capacity, were simulated. Effects due to a single turbine and an array of four turbines were negligible. The main effect of the array of 57 turbines was to cause a shift in position of the jet through the tidal channel, as the flow was diverted around the tidal array. The net effect of this shift was to increase near-bed velocities and bed shear stress along the northern perimeter of the array by up to 0.8 m·s−1 and 5 Pa respectively. Within the array and directly downstream, near-bed velocities and bed shear stress were reduced by similar amounts. Changes of this magnitude have the potential to modify the known sand and shell banks in the region. Continued monitoring of the sediment distributions in the region will provide a valuable dataset on the impacts of tidal energy extraction on local sediment dynamics. Finally, the mean power generated per turbine is shown to decrease as the turbine array increased in size.

... 29 Labor 9 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Net income and net tangible assets tests. 4204.13 Section....13 Net income and net tangible assets tests. (a) General. The criteria under this section are that either— (1) Net income test. The purchaser's average net income after taxes for its three most...

Before EPA allows a bed bug claim on a label, the product must be supported by data showing it will kill bed bugs when applied according to the label. Also consider factors such as extent of infestation, site preparation, and insect life stages.

21 states have some level of regulation with regard to bed bugs. Most of these requirements focus on hotels and landlords or other property managers. The Department of Housing and Urban Development has guidance on controlling bed bugs in public housing.

[1] Field measurements of debris-bed friction on a smooth rock tablet at the bed of Engabreen, a hard-bedded, temperate glacier in northern Norway, indicated that basal ice containing 10% debris by volume exerted local shear traction of up to 500 kPa. The corresponding bulk friction coefficient between the dirty basal ice and the tablet was between 0.05 and 0.08. A model of friction in which nonrotating spherical rock particles are held in frictional contact with the bed by bed-normal ice flow can account for these measurements if the power law exponent for ice flowing past large clasts is 1. A small exponent (n glacier sliding at 20 m a-1 with a geothermally induced melt rate of 0.006 m a-1 and an effective pressure of 300 kPa can exceed 100 kPa. Debris-bed friction can therefore be a major component of sliding resistance, contradicting the common assumption that debris-bed friction is negligible. Copyright 2005 by the American Geophysical Union.

of some of the most important papers on the application and theory of high-level Petri nets. In this way it makes the relevant literature more available. It is our hope that the book will be a useful source of information and that, e.g., it can be used in the organization of Petri net courses. To make...... there is only one kind of token and this means that the state of a place is described by an integer (and in many cases even by a boolean). In high-level nets each token can carry a complex information/data - which, e.g., may describe the entire state of a process or a data base. Today most practical...... by other papers. Thus, e.g., none of the original papers introducing the first versions of high-level Petri nets have been included. The introductions to the individual sections mention a number of researchers who have contributed to the development of high-level Petri nets. Detailed references...

As part of this effort, we propose a model based testing approach for multi agent systems based on such a model called Reference net, where a tool, which aims to providing a uniform and automated approach is developed. The feasibility and the advantage of the proposed approach are shown through a short case study.

Using a proofs-as-programs correspondence, Terui was able to compare two models of parallel computation: Boolean circuits and proof nets for multiplicative linear logic. Mogbil et. al. gave a logspace translation allowing us to compare their computational power as uniform complexity classes. This paper presents a novel translation in AC0 and focuses on a simpler restricted notion of uniform Boolean proof nets. We can then encode constant-depth circuits and compare complexity classes below logspace, which were out of reach with the previous translations.

An easy-to-follow guide with detailed step-by step-instructions on how to implement the different key components in NetScaler, with real-world examples and sample scenarios.If you are a Citrix or network administrator who needs to implement NetScaler in your virtual environment to gain an insight on its functionality, this book is ideal for you. A basic understanding of networking and familiarity with some of the different Citrix products such as XenApp or XenDesktop is a prerequisite.

The Net4Care PHMR library contains a) A GreenCDA approach for constructing a data object representing a PHMR document: SimpleClinicalDocument, and b) A Builder which can produce a XML document representing a valid Danish PHMR (following the MedCom profile) document from the SimpleClinicalDocument......The Net4Care PHMR library contains a) A GreenCDA approach for constructing a data object representing a PHMR document: SimpleClinicalDocument, and b) A Builder which can produce a XML document representing a valid Danish PHMR (following the MedCom profile) document from the Simple...

be carried out directly in a normal testing machine. The torsion strength is believed to be the most important parameter in out-of-plane resistance of masonry walls subjected to bending about an axis perpendicular to the bed joints. The paper also contains a few test results from bending of small walls about...... an axis perpendicular to the bed joints, which indicate the close connection between these results and results from torsion tests. These characteristics make the torsion strength well suited to act as substitute parameter for the bending strength of masonry about an axis perpendicular to the bed joints....

Surgery is the only treatment that may cure the patient with gastroentero-pancreatic (GEP) neuroendocrine tumours (NET) and neuroendocrine carcinomas (NEC) and should always be considered as first line treatment if R0/R1 resection can be achieved. The surgical and interventional procedures for GEP...

Integral to higher education, academic integrity stands as a cornerstone of academic life. However, compelling evidence of widespread academic dishonesty among Net-Generation students threatens to undermine both the environment of trust that nourishes integrity and the safeguards that help ensure it. Working from their experience with widespread…

A process language for security protocols is presented together with a semantics in terms of sets of events. The denotation of process is a set of events, and as each event specifies a set of pre and postconditions, this denotation can be viewed as a Petri net. By means of an example we illustrat...

narcissistic ―me‖ generation to a perceived lack of respect for authority. The Net Generation displays high self-esteem and confidence but appear much more...by our adversaries, especially by terrorist organizations that continually look for vulnerabilities to exploit. Location- based social networking

Full Text Available Abstract Background Long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs have been strongly advocated for use to prevent malaria in sub-Saharan Africa and have significantly reduced human-vector contact. PermaNet® 2.0 is among the five LLINs brands which have been given full approval by the WHO Pesticide Evaluation Scheme (WHOPES. The LLINs are expected to protect the malaria endemic communities, but a number of factors within the community can affect their durability and efficacy. This study evaluated the durability, efficacy and retention of PermaNet® 2.0 after five years of use in a Tanzanian community. Method Two to three day- old non blood-fed female mosquitoes from an insectary susceptible colony (An. gambiae s.s, this colony was established at TPRI from Kisumu, Kenya in 1992 and wild mosquito populations (An. arabiensis and Culex quinquefasciatus were used in cone bioassay tests to assess the efficacy of mosquito nets. Findings The knockdown effect was recorded after three minutes of exposure, and mortality was recorded after 24 hours post-exposure. Mortality of An. gambiae s.s from insectary colony was 100% while An. arabiensis and Cx.quinquefasciatus wild populations had reduced mortality. Insecticide content of the new (the bednet of the same brand but never used before and used PermaNet® 2.0 was determined using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC. Conclusion The results of this study suggest that, in order to achieve maximum protection against malaria, public health education focusing on bednet use and maintenance should be incorporated into the mass distribution of nets in communities.

Australia has experienced a sudden and unexpected resurgence in bed bug infestations from both Cimex lectularius L. and Cimex hemipterus F. A survey in 2006 revealed that infestations had increased across the nation by an average of 4,500% since the start of the decade. In response, a multi-disciplinary approach to combat the rise of this public health pest was implemented and involved the coordinated efforts of several organizations. The key components of the strategy included the introduction of a pest management standard ‘A Code of Practice for the Control of Bed Bug Infestations in Australia’ that defines and promotes ‘best practice’ in bed bug eradication, the development of a policy and procedural guide for accommodation providers, education of stakeholders in best management practices, and research. These strategies continue to evolve with developments that lead to improvements in ‘best practice’ while bed bugs remain problematic in Australia. PMID:26467616

... temperatures are necessary for successful heat treatment. Black plastic bags in the sun might work to kill bed ... Place the used bag in a tightly sealed plastic bag and in an outside garbage bin. 10. Turn ...

Full Text Available Australia has experienced a sudden and unexpected resurgence in bed bug infestations from both Cimex lectularius L. and Cimex hemipterus F. A survey in 2006 revealed that infestations had increased across the nation by an average of 4,500% since the start of the decade. In response, a multi-disciplinary approach to combat the rise of this public health pest was implemented and involved the coordinated efforts of several organizations. The key components of the strategy included the introduction of a pest management standard ‘A Code of Practice for the Control of Bed Bug Infestations in Australia’ that defines and promotes ‘best practice’ in bed bug eradication, the development of a policy and procedural guide for accommodation providers, education of stakeholders in best management practices, and research. These strategies continue to evolve with developments that lead to improvements in ‘best practice’ while bed bugs remain problematic in Australia.

Australia has experienced a sudden and unexpected resurgence in bed bug infestations from both Cimex lectularius L. and Cimex hemipterus F. A survey in 2006 revealed that infestations had increased across the nation by an average of 4,500% since the start of the decade. In response, a multi-disciplinary approach to combat the rise of this public health pest was implemented and involved the coordinated efforts of several organizations. The key components of the strategy included the introduction of a pest management standard 'A Code of Practice for the Control of Bed Bug Infestations in Australia' that defines and promotes 'best practice' in bed bug eradication, the development of a policy and procedural guide for accommodation providers, education of stakeholders in best management practices, and research. These strategies continue to evolve with developments that lead to improvements in 'best practice' while bed bugs remain problematic in Australia.

This paper describes a simple test method for determining the torsion strength of a single bed joint between two bricks and presents results from testing using this test method. The setup for the torsion test is well defined, require minimal preparation of the test specimen and the test can...... be carried out directly in a normal testing machine. The torsion strength is believed to be the most important parameter in out-of-plane resistance of masonry walls subjected to bending about an axis perpendicular to the bed joints. The paper also contains a few test results from bending of small walls about...... an axis perpendicular to the bed joints, which indicate the close connection between these results and results from torsion tests. These characteristics make the torsion strength well suited to act as substitute parameter for the bending strength of masonry about an axis perpendicular to the bed joints....

using the probably most relevant "worst case" data. There were no relevant difference between the effects of the water bed and the foam bed. CONCLUSION: The Waterbed and foam mattress' did influence back symptoms, function and sleep more positively as apposed to the hard mattress, but the differences...... mattresses have a positive effect on LBP, and especially a hard mattress is commonly believed to have a positive effect. METHODS: One hundred sixty CLBP patients were randomized to 1 of 3 groups, having a mattress/bed mounted in their sleeping room for 1 month. The beds were: (1) waterbed (Akva), (2) body......-conforming foam mattress (Tempur), and (3) a hard mattress (Innovation Futon). At baseline and after 4 weeks, a blinded observer interviewed the patients on LBP levels (0-10), daily function (activities of daily living, 0-30), and on the amount of sleeping hours/night. RESULTS: Because of dropout of 19 patients...

Infestations caused by bed bugs have resurfaced during the past decade across all continents. Even though bed bugs primarily cause skin manifestations in humans, a major stigma is placed upon people or institutions found to carry them. It is important for healthcare facilities to be prepared for this pest by implementing policies, carefully selecting materials used for hospital furniture, and educating providers on early identification and control.

.... In the present WHOPES phase II analogue study, the utility of chlorfenapyr, a pyrrole class insecticide mixed with alpha-cypermethrin on a long-lasting mosquito bednet was evaluated against Anopheles gambiae s.l...

The dual fluidized bed reactor is a recirculating system in which one half of the unit operates as a steam pyrolysis device for biomass. The pyrolysis occurs by introducing biomass and steam to a hot fluidized bed of inert material such as coarse sand. Syngas is produced during the pyrolysis and exits the top of the reactor with the steam. A crossover arm, fed by gravity, moves sand and char from the pyrolyzer to the second fluidized bed. This sand bed uses blown air to combust the char. The exit stream from this side of the reactor is carbon dioxide, water and ash. There is a second gravity fed crossover arm to return sand to the pyrolysis side. The recirculating action of the sand and the char is the key to the operation of the dual fluidized bed reactor. The objective of the project was to design and construct a dual fluidized bed prototype reactor from literature information and in discussion with established experts in the field. That would be appropriate in scale and operation to measure the relative performance of the gasification of biomass and low ranked coals to produce a high quality synthesis gas with no dilution from nitrogen or combustion products.

Full Text Available Exposure to drugs of abuse induces plasticity in the brain and creates persistent drug-related memories. These changes in plasticity and persistent drug memories are believed to produce aberrant motivation and reinforcement contributing to addiction. Most studies have explored the effect drugs of abuse have on pre- and postsynaptic cells and astrocytes; however, more recently, attention has shifted to explore the effect these drugs have on the extracellular matrix (ECM. Within the ECM are unique structures arranged in a net-like manner, surrounding a subset of neurons called perineuronal nets (PNNs. This review focuses on drug-induced changes in PNNs, the molecules that regulate PNNs, and the expression of PNNs within brain circuitry mediating motivation, reward, and reinforcement as it pertains to addiction.

reclaim system does not enable Fort Carson to achieve its net zero water goal, which is to reclaim water through the WWTP equal to or greater than the...Class A Recycled Water Plant WWTP rapid infiltration basin #1 (of 4) 426,000 gal water supply storage reservoir Primary Lagoon for WWTP 6 7...cost of water = Longer time to payback  Double charged for incoming and outgoing  Army owned WWTP – true cost of water = water/sewer rates It

Program Office (Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations and Environment) 5850 21st Street, Building 211, Second Floor Fort...of energy, water, and waste to capture and commercialize the resource value and/or enhance the ecological productivity of land, water, and air. A...water, and waste to capture and commercialize the resource value and/or enhance the ecological productivity of land, water, and air. A Net Zero

The concept of process expression of bounded Petri nets is presented.Moreover,an algorithm to find the process expression for a bounded Petri net is given.A process expression of a bounded Petri net is a regular expression whose every alphabet symbol represents a basic subprocess of the net.The regular set expressed by the regular expression is the set of all surjective processes of a bounded Petri net.A surjective process of a bounded Petri net is a process of this net in which every s-cut corresponds to a reachable marking of the net.Therefore,all surjective processes of a bounded Petri net can be obtained as long as its process expression and the basic subprocess represented by the alphabet symbols of the process expression are given.

Herein we have tried to provide a comprehensive review of mist-netting techniques suitable for both novice and experienced netters. General mist-netting procedures and modifications developed by netters for particular bird species and habitats are included. Factors which influence capture success, including site selection, net specifications and placement, weather, and time of day, are discussed. Guidelines are presented for the care of netted birds and the use of mist-net data in the study of bird communities. The advantages of the use of mist nets over other methods of capturing birds are also discussed.

A fluidized bed boiler is started up by directing into the static bed of inert and carbonaceous granules a downwardly angled burner so that the hot gases cause spouting. Air is introduced into the bed at a rate insufficient to fluidize the entire bed. Three regions are now formed in the bed, a region of lowest gas resistance, a fluidized region and a static region with a mobile region at the interface of the fluidized and static regions. Particles are transferred by the spouting action to form a conical heap with the carbonaceous granules concentrated at the top. The hot burner gases ignite the carbonaceous matter on the top of the bed which becomes distributed in the bed by the spouting action and bed movement. Thereafter the rate of air introduction is increased to fluidize the entire bed, the spouter/burner is shut off, and the entire fluidized bed is ignited.

, etc. It seems obvious that the complexity of the model contributes to design errors and a lack of understanding. It is not easy to measure complexity, however. This paper presents three complexity metrics that have been implemented in the process analysis tool ProM. The metrics are defined...... analysts have difficulties grasping the dynamics implied by a process model. Recent empirical studies show that people make numerous errors when modeling complex business processes, e.g., about 20 percent of the EPCs in the SAP reference model have design flaws resulting in potential deadlocks, livelocks...... for a subclass of Petri nets named Workflow nets, but the results can easily be applied to other languages. To demonstrate the applicability of these metrics, we have applied our approach and tool to 262 relatively complex Protos models made in the context of various student projects. This allows us to validate...

The Net4Care PHMR library contains a) A GreenCDA approach for constructing a data object representing a PHMR document: SimpleClinicalDocument, and b) A Builder which can produce a XML document representing a valid Danish PHMR (following the MedCom profile) document from the SimpleClinicalDocument......The Net4Care PHMR library contains a) A GreenCDA approach for constructing a data object representing a PHMR document: SimpleClinicalDocument, and b) A Builder which can produce a XML document representing a valid Danish PHMR (following the MedCom profile) document from the Simple......ClinicalDocument object. This software component is adopted by several Danish companies as PHMR engine for telemedical applications, and is used in the process of writing the Danish PHMR standard....

This paper presents a novel methodology for modelling and analyzing of behav-ior relations of concurrent systems. The set of all firing sequences of a Petri net is an importanttool for describing the dynamic behavior of concurrent systems. In this paper, the behaviorrelativity of two concurrent subsystems in their synchronous composition is presented. Such be-havior relativities, including Controlled Relativity, United Relativity, Interactive Relativity andExclusive Relativity, are defined respectively. The properties of the relativities are discussed indetail. The analysis method for these properties is based on minimum T-invariants, when twosubsystems are live bounded Petri nets. A well-known example has also been analyaed usingthe new methodology to demonstrate the advantages of the proposed methodology.

Volunteers and charitable organizations contribute significantly to community welfare through their prosocial behavior: that is, discretionary behavior such as assisting, comforting, sharing, and cooperating intended to help worthy beneficiaries. This essay focuses on prosocial behavior on the Internet. It describes how offline charitable organizations are using the Net to become more efficient and effective. It also considers entirely new models of Net-based volunteer behavior directed at creating socially beneficial information goods and services. After exploring the scope and diversity of online prosocial behavior, the essay focuses on ways to encourage this kind of behavior through appropriate task and social structures, motivational signals, and trust indicators. It concludes by asking how local offline communities ultimately could be diminished or strengthened as prosocial behavior increases online.

For a net sustainable building (NSB), the paper develops its definition, and gives its characteristics. The NSB should provide the maximum thermal comfort were its energy consumption is totally covered by energy of renewable origin during its life cycle. The covered energy consumption should be operational and embodied. The used renewable energy may be that of sun and of anergy. The building may be furthermore evaluated regarding its status with regard to the mismatch, primary energy, emergy, exergy, fossil energy, carbon and dissemination.

the Office of Net Assessment 6 Deputy Director for Theater Assessments and Planning, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Program Analysis ...countermeasures electronic countermeasures European Economic Community electronic warfare -F- FOFA FY follow-on-forces attack fiscal year -G... analysis of current and projected capabilities of US forces, assisted by allies where appropriate, to deter war and, if deterrence fails, to terminate the

U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior — These are shapefiles and ARC/INFO polygon coverages showing the isopachs of total net coal in beds greater than or equal to 1.2' thick for the A, B, C, and D coal...

inte- rior and exterior residual sprays on structures and treated bednets have their own rich history and may be considered a bar- rier treatment...cühimanus\\ laboratory and field-evaluation in the Dominican Republic. Mcd Vet Entomol 1993:7:36.3-8. 12. Huehne WH: Barrier spraying at Kelantan side of Thai

The objective of the Advanced Near Net Shape Technology (ANNST) project is to radically improve near net shape manufacturing methods from the current Technology/ Manufacturing Readiness Levels (TRL/MRL 3-4) to the point where they are viable candidates (TRL/ MRL-6) for shortening the time and cost for insertion of new aluminum alloys and revolutionary manufacturing methods into the development/improvement of space structures. Conventional cyrotank manufacturing processes require fabrication of multiple pieces welded together to form a complete tank. A variety of near net shape manufacturing processes has demonstrated excellent potential for enabling single-piece construction of components such as domes, barrels, and ring frames. Utilization of such processes can dramatically reduce the extent of welding and joining needed to construct cryogenic tanks and other aerospace structures. The specific focus of this project is to successfully mature the integrally stiffened cylinder (ISC) process in which a single-piece cylinder with integral stiffeners is formed in one spin/flow forming process. Structural launch vehicle components, like cryogenic fuel tanks (e.g., space shuttle external tank), are currently fabricated via multipiece assembly of parts produced through subtractive manufacturing techniques. Stiffened structural panels are heavily machined from thick plate, which results in excessive scrap rates. Multipiece construction requires welds to assemble the structure, which increases the risk for defects and catastrophic failures.

Regeneration operation is a very important operation, because it is the most influential factor for deciding the net operation cycle time and the minimum dimension of Cryogenic Molecular Sieve Bed (CMSB). However, the experimental data of CMSB regeneration operation was not so sufficient that even the optimum regeneration procedure could not be decided yet. This work was focused on getting the primary information about various regeneration procedures. (author)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — This RadNet Quality Data Asset includes all data since initiation and when ERAMS was expanded to become RadNet, name changed to reflect new mission. This includes...

EPA’s RadNet data are available for viewing in a searchable database or as PDF reports. Historical and current RadNet monitoring data are used to estimate long-term trends in environmental radiation levels.

Full Text Available Abstract Background The objective of this project was to achieve high, sustainable levels of net coverage in a village in rural Tanzania by combining free distribution of long-lasting insecticide-impregnated nets (LLINs with community-tailored education. In Tanzania, malaria is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality. Although malaria bednets have a well-established role in reducing disease burden, few rural households have access to nets, and effective use depends on personal practices and attitudes. Methods Five practices and attitudes inconsistent with effective LLIN use were identified from household interviews (n = 10. A randomized survey of villagers (n = 132 verified local prevalence of these practices and attitudes. Community leaders held an educational session for two members of every household addressing these practice and attitudes, demonstrating proper LLIN use, and emphasizing behaviour modification. Attendees received one or two LLINs per household. Surveys distributed three weeks (n = 104 and 15 months (n = 104 post-intervention assessed corrected practices and attitudes. Project efficacy was defined by correction of baseline practices and attitudes as well as high rates of reported daily net use, with statistical significance determined by chi-square test. Results Baseline interviews and surveys revealed incorrect practices and attitudes regarding 1 use of nets in dry season, 2 need to retreat LLINs, 3 children napping under nets, 4 need to repair nets, and 5 net procurement as a priority, with 53- 88.6% incorrect responses (11.4-47% correct responses. A three-week follow-up demonstrated 83-95% correct responses. Fifteen-month follow-up showed statistically significant (p Conclusions Results suggest that addressing community-specific practices and attitudes prior to LLIN distribution promotes consistent and correct use, and helps change attitudes towards bednets as a preventative health measure. Future LLIN distributions

If you're a Java developer of any level using NetBeans and want to learn how to get the most out of NetBeans, then this book is for you. Learning how to utilize NetBeans will provide a firm foundation for your Java application development.

A unifying framework for calibration and prediction in multivariate calibration is shown based on the concept of the net analyte signal (NAS). From this perspective, the calibration step can be regarded as the calculation of a net sensitivity vector, whose length is the amount of net signal when the

The propagandization of a Net Generation adds nothing to our understanding of the digital behaviour of young people. Indeed, it is becoming increasingly obvious that the whole concept of a Net Generation rests on incorrect assumptions. Hence, arguments based on a Net Generation are not only irreleva

... Life Cycle Cost Analyses § 436.20 Net savings. For a retrofit project, net savings may be found by subtracting life cycle costs based on the proposed project from life cycle costs based on not having it. For a new building design, net savings is the difference between the life cycle costs of an...

Full Text Available An account is given of the basic nets that are important in the description and design of metal-organic framework (MOF structures. These are generally of minimal transitivity, a concept which is explained. Derived nets are defined and the advantages of using derived nets to describe the topology of MOF frameworks with multiple branch points are emphasized.

The interrelationships between the changes in plasma volume, hematocrit, and plasma proteins during muscular exercise and bed rest were investigated. Proportionally, the changes in hematocrit are always smaller than the changes in plasma volume. For this reason changes in the concentration of blood constituents can only be quantitated on the basis of plasma volume changes. During short periods of intensive exercise, there was a small loss of plasma proteins. With prolonged submaximal exercise there was a net gain in plasma protein, which contributes to stabilization of the vascular volume. Prolonged bed rest induced hypoproteinemia; this loss of plasma protein probably plays an important role in recumbency hypovolemia.

This is a concise, practical guide that will help you learn Generics in .NET, with lots of real world and fun-to-build examples and clear explanations. It is packed with screenshots to aid your understanding of the process. This book is aimed at beginners in Generics. It assumes some working knowledge of C# , but it isn't mandatory. The following would get the most use out of the book: Newbie C# developers struggling with Generics. Experienced C++ and Java Programmers who are migrating to C# and looking for an alternative to other generic frameworks like STL and JCF would find this book handy.

Process modeling languages such as EPCs, BPMN, flow charts, UML activity diagrams, Petri nets, etc.\\ are used to model business processes and to configure process-aware information systems. It is known that users have problems understanding these diagrams. In fact, even process engineers and system......, etc. It seems obvious that the complexity of the model contributes to design errors and a lack of understanding. It is not easy to measure complexity, however. This paper presents three complexity metrics that have been implemented in the process analysis tool ProM. The metrics are defined...

To solve the problems of the interleaving assumption and the single resource inPUNITY (Petri net and UNITY) and Petri net respectively, this paper proposes a set of mappingrules from PUNITY to UniNet. Based on these rules, problems of one field can be transformed toproblems of the other field and powerful tools of Petri net and UNITY can be used. The papergives a sketch of the mapping rules and applies the rules to an example. Meanwhile, the mappingrules can help computer to translate PUNITY to UniNet easily.

As π-calculus based on the interleaving semantics cannot depict the true concurrency and has few supporting tools,it is translated into Petri nets.π-calculus is divided into basic elements,sequence,concurrency,choice and recursive modules.These modules are translated into Petri nets to construct a complicated system.Petri nets semantics for π-calculus visualize system structure as well as system behaviors.The structural analysis techniques allow direct qualitative analysis of the system properties on the structure of the nets.Finally,Petri nets semantics for π-calculus are illustrated by applying them to mobile telephone systems.

as a mechanism for modules in Petri nets that is independent from a particular version of Petri nets and that can mimic many composition mechanisms by a simple import and export concept. Due to its generality, the semantics of modular PNML was only informally defined. Moreover, modular PNML did not define which...... concepts could or should be subject to import and export in high-level Petri nets. In this paper, we formalise a minimal version of modular high-level Petri nets, which is based on the concepts of modular PNML. This shows that modular PNML can be formalised once a specific version of Petri net is fixed...

This report is identical to an earlier version of May 1978 except that Chapter 5 has been revised. A new paper: "A Petri Net Definition of a System Description Language", DAIMI, April 1979, 20 pages, extends the Petri net model to include a data state representing the program variables. Delta...... and the possibility of using predicates to specify state changes. In this paper a formal semantics for Delta is defined and analysed using Petri nets. Petri nets was chosen because the ideas behind Petri nets and Delta concide on several points. A number of proposals for changes in Delta, which resulted from...

The paper proposes an approach to solving some verification problems of time Petri nets using linear programming. The approach is based on the observation that for loop-closed time Petri nets, it is only necessary to investigate a finite prefix of an untimed run of the underlying Petri net. Using the technique the paper gives solutions to reachability and bounded delay timing analysis problems. For both problems algorithms are given, that are decision procedures for loop-closed time Petri nets, and semi-decision procedures for general time Petri nets.

East African Medical Journal Vol: 93 No. 10 (Supplement) .... tool is being successfully implemented within the country. the goal of ... by the sub-county health management team before .... declining uptake could be attributed to supply chain.

Research on intelligent and reconfigurable wireless systems is in continuous evolution. Nevertheless, in order to fix some keystones, more and more researchers are entering the idea of research-oriented test beds. Unfortunately, it is very difficult for a wide number of research groups to start w...

The resurgence of bed bugs Cimex lectularius L. in the United States and worldwide has resulted in an increase in research by university, government, and industry scientists directed at the biology and control of this blood-sucking pest. A need has subsequently arisen for producing sufficient biolog...

Find and correctly identify an infestation early before it becomes widespread. Look for rusty or reddish stains and pinpoint dark spots on bed sheets or mattresses, and search for bugs near the piping, seams and tags of the mattress and box spring.

Beds are one of the most important resources in a healthcare system. How to manage beds efficiently is an important indicator of the efficiency of the healthcare system. Bed management is challenging to many healthcare service providers in many aspects. In recent years, population growth and aging society impose extra pressure on bed requirement. There are usually two key performance indicators of a bed management system: bed occupancy rate and bed waiting time. In this paper, different discharge patterns and their impacts on the bed occupancy rate and bed waiting time are studied. A discrete event simulation model is constructed to evaluate the existing discharge pattern in a Singapore regional hospital using actual hospital admission and discharge transaction data. Then different discharge patterns are tested in the same context. Simulation results show that a proper discharge pattern significantly smoothes the fluctuation of bed occupancy rate and reduce the bed waiting time.

School nurses are often called upon to provide vital information to students, parents, teachers, and administrators. These tips on identifying, managing and preventing bed bugs will help you to effectively respond if bed bugs appear in your school.

National Home Textile Standardization Technology Committee(NHTSTC)set up its Bedding Branch Committee. This will promote the work of Chinese bedding technology standardization and a symbol that China step up to meet the

Until now the bed has been the basic physical resource in hospitals. This type of furniture has served to study and treat patients, through out the centuries it has undergone changes in the materials they are made of dimensions, functionality, accessories, aesthetic, and design. The hospital bed history is not well known, there are thousands of documents about the evolution of hospitals, but not enough is known about hospital beds, a link between the past and the present. The medical, anthropological, technological, social, and economic dynamics and knowledge have produced a variety of beds in general and hospital beds in particular. From instinctive, rustic, poor and irregular "sites" that have differed in shape and size they had evolved into ergonomic equipment. The history of the hospital bed reflects the culture, techniques and human thinking. Current hospital beds include several types: for adults, for children, for labor, for intensive therapy, emergency purposes, census and non census beds etc.

QuarkNet is a long-term high school education project, supported by NSF and DOE and carried out by a collaboration of university and laboratory research groups. These research groups are part of major international particle physics experiments, including those at CERN in Switzerland, Fermilab in Illinois, and SLAC in California. Goals and Objectives: A major goal is to engage students and teachers in authentic scientific research; they gain a first-hand understanding of research and its application in the inquiry method of learning. Teachers enhance their content knowledge, increase their abilities to solve science-related problems, engage students in scientific inquiry, and develop responsibility for their own professional development. Students learn fundamental physics and are motivated by current research questions as they analyze real data. A second goal is to engage particle physicists with current issues in science education, including their understanding of the National Science Education Standards and local science education needs and what constitutes age-appropriate content. Project Design: Working with physicists nationwide, we have established a project framework with three program areas-teacher research experience, teacher development programs, and online resources and inquiry-based activities. Eight-week research appointments allow teachers to experience scientific research first-hand. In teacher institutes the next summer these teachers and scientists lead a group of teachers through a short research scenario lasting two to three weeks and assist them in creating similar scenarios for their students. When fully implemented QuarkNet will support centers associated with 60 particle physics research groups at universities and laboratories in the U. S. The QuarkNet website provides: - Experimental data for use in inquiry-based activities. - Opportunities for communication and collaboration among physicists, teachers and students. - A place for students to

We discuss the emergence of bound states in the low-energy spectrum of the string-net Hamiltonian in the presence of a string tension. In the ladder geometry, we show that a single bound state arises either for a finite tension or in the zero-tension limit depending on the theory considered. In the latter case, we perturbatively compute the binding energy as a function of the total quantum dimension. We also address this issue in the honeycomb lattice where the number of bound states in the topological phase depends on the total quantum dimension. Finally, the internal structure of these bound states is analyzed in the zero-tension limit.

We discuss the emergence of bound states in the low-energy spectrum of the string-net Hamiltonian in the presence of a string tension. In the ladder geometry, we show that a single bound state arises either for a finite tension or in the zero-tension limit depending on the theory considered. In the latter case, we perturbatively compute the binding energy as a function of the total quantum dimension. We also address this issue in the honeycomb lattice where the number of bound states in the topological phase depends on the total quantum dimension. Finally, the internal structure of these bound states is analyzed in the zero-tension limit.

Full Text Available Wireless sensors rely on battery power, and in many applications it is difficult or prohibitive to replace them. Hence, in order to prolongate the system's lifetime, some sensors can be kept inactive while others perform all the tasks. In this paper, we study the -coverage problem of activating the minimum number of sensors to ensure that every point in the area is covered by at least sensors. This ensures higher fault tolerance, robustness, and improves many operations, among which position detection and intrusion detection. The -coverage problem is trivially NP-complete, and hence we can only provide approximation algorithms. In this paper, we present an algorithm based on an extension of the classical -net technique. This method gives an -approximation, where is the number of sensors in an optimal solution. We do not make any particular assumption on the shape of the areas covered by each sensor, besides that they must be closed, connected, and without holes.

Study of fluidized-packed bed includes investigation of heat transfer, solids-gas mixing, and elutriation characteristics. A fluidized-packed bed is a system involving the fluidization of small particles in the voids of a packed bed of larger nonfluidized particles.

A control loop and fluidization quality analyzer for a fluidized bed utilizes time varying pressure drop measurements. A fast-response pressure transducer measures the overall bed pressure drop, or over some segment of the bed, and the pressure drop signal is processed to produce an output voltage which changes with the degree of fluidization turbulence.

Bed bugs are a growing problem, not only in homes and hotels, but also in schools and colleges. Facility administrators and staff need to understand the bed bug resurgence and develop best practices to deal with an infestation. In this article, the author offers tips for preventing and treating bed bugs in school and university settings.

Bed bugs are a growing problem, not only in homes and hotels, but also in schools and colleges. Facility administrators and staff need to understand the bed bug resurgence and develop best practices to deal with an infestation. In this article, the author offers tips for preventing and treating bed bugs in school and university settings.

Within the NICe-funded project 'Nordic Environmental Technology Solutions (NETS)' a new type of networking at the Nordic level was organized in order to jointly exploit the rapidly growing market potential in the environmental technology sector. The project aimed at increased and professionalized commercialization of Nordic Cleantech in energy and water business segments through 1) closer cooperation and joint marketing activities, 2) a website, 3) cleantech product information via brochures and publications 4) and participating in relevant trade fairs and other industry events. Facilitating business-to-business activities was another core task for the NETS project partners from Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark with the aim to encourage total solutions for combined Cleantech system offers. The project has achieved to establish a Cleantech register of 600 Nordic Cleantech companies, a network of 86 member enterprises, produced several publications and brochures for direct technology promotion and a website for direct access to company profiles and contact data. The project partners have attended 14 relevant international Cleantech trade fairs and conferences and facilitated business-to-business contacts added by capacity building offers through two company workshops. The future challenge for the project partners and Nordic Cleantech will be to coordinate the numerous efforts within the Nordic countries in order to reach concerted action and binding of member companies for reliable services, an improved visibility and knowledge exchange. With Cleantech's growing market influence and public awareness, the need to develop total solutions is increasing likewise. Marketing efforts should be encouraged cross-sectional and cross-border among the various levels of involved actors from both the public and the private sector. (au)

Full Text Available Paul J Krezanoski1–3 1Department of Medicine, 2Department of Pediatrics, Massachusetts General Hospital, 3Medicine and Pedatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA Abstract: The wide-scale adoption of insecticide-treated nets (ITNs has led to significant reductions in malaria morbidity and mortality worldwide. Delivery of ITNs to the 3.2 billion people at risk of malaria requires multiple steps in diverse settings. The effectiveness of the delivery of ITNs in order to prevent malaria relies on activities that include ITN manufacturing and design, integration into national and international malaria prevention policies, supplying and distributing ITNs to households and individuals, and, finally, programs focused on spurring demand for and use of ITNs by individuals at risk. This paper reviews some recent innovative strategies for ITN delivery across these four domains, places these innovations within the context of the history of ITN deployment, and identifies opportunities to further improve the effectiveness of this ubiquitous public health tool. Keywords: malaria, insecticide-treated bednets, prevention, access, ownership, use, policies

A review of admissions to cancer services at University Hospital Galway (UHG) was undertaken to assess the appropriateness of hospital usage. All cancer specialty patients admitted from 26-28 May 2009 were reviewed (n = 82). Chi square tests, Exact tests, and One-way ANOVA were utilised to analyse key issues emerging from the data. Fifty (61%) were classified as emergencies. Twenty three (67%) occupied a designated cancer bed with 24 (30%) in outlying non-oncology wards. The mean length of stay was 29.3 days. Possible alternatives to admission were identified for 15 (19%) patients. There was no evidence of discharge planning for 50 (60%) admissions. There is considerable potential to make more appropriate utilisation of UHG for cancer patients, particularly in terms of reducing bed days and length of stay and the proportion of emergency cancer admissions, and further developing integrated systems of discharge planning.

A review of admissions to cancer services at University Hospital Galway (UHG) was undertaken to assess the appropriateness of hospital usage. All cancer specialty patients admitted from 26-28 May 2009 were reviewed (n = 82). Chi square tests, Exact tests, and One-way ANOVA were utilised to analyse key issues emerging from the data. Fifty (61%) were classified as emergencies. Twenty three (67%) occupied a designated cancer bed with 24 (30%) in outlying non-oncology wards. The mean length of stay was 29.3 days. Possible alternatives to admission were identified for 15 (19%) patients. There was no evidence of discharge planning for 50 (60%) admissions. There is considerable potential to make more appropriate utilisation of UHG for cancer patients, particularly in terms of reducing bed days and length of stay and the proportion of emergency cancer admissions, and further developing integrated systems of discharge planning.

Full Text Available Petri nets are a general and well-established model of concurrent and distributed computation and behaviour, including that taking place in biological systems. In this survey paper, we are concerned with intrinsic relationships between Petri nets and two formal models inspired by aspects of the functioning of the living cell: membrane systems and reaction systems. In particular, we are interested in the benefits that can result from establishing strong semantical links between Petri nets and membrane systems and reaction systems. We first discuss Petri nets with localities reflecting the compartmentalisation modelled in membrane systems. Then special attention is given to set-nets, a new Petri net model for reaction systems and their qualitative approach to the investigation of the processes carried out by biochemical reactions taking place in the living cell.

Full Text Available Minor bauxite deposits and occurrences were formed in technically disturbed environments in the middle part of the Adriatic geotectonic unit in Dinarides, contemporary with the clastic Jelar-beds in the Late Lutetian time. Uneven chemical composition of these Eocene bauxites, their sporadic occurrences in developed paleorelief as well as characteristic petrographic composition of the immediate overlying rocks point out at different genetical conditions (the paper is published in Croatian.

This study presents the results of a long-term monitoring program of bed level changes measured during 8 yr at an intertidal mudflat in a microtidal, temperate coastal lagoon. Additionally, bed level measurements obtained at a 10-min temporal resolution at the same tidal flat and at the bed of a ...... are not seriously threatened by the expected sea level rise in the 21st century.......This study presents the results of a long-term monitoring program of bed level changes measured during 8 yr at an intertidal mudflat in a microtidal, temperate coastal lagoon. Additionally, bed level measurements obtained at a 10-min temporal resolution at the same tidal flat and at the bed...... of a nearby tidal channel are presented. Short-term changes in bed level are one or two orders of magnitude larger than the annual net-deposition rate, which shows that the environment is highly dynamic with respect to erosion, transport and deposition of fine-grained sediment. Some seasonality in the bed...

Full Text Available Abstract Background Ownership of insecticidal mosquito nets has dramatically increased in Ethiopia since 2006, but the proportion of persons with access to such nets who use them has declined. It is important to understand individual level net use factors in the context of the home to modify programmes so as to maximize net use. Methods Generalized linear latent and mixed models (GLLAMM were used to investigate net use using individual level data from people living in net-owning households from two surveys in Ethiopia: baseline 2006 included 12,678 individuals from 2,468 households and a sub-sample of the Malaria Indicator Survey (MIS in 2007 included 14,663 individuals from 3,353 households. Individual factors (age, sex, pregnancy; net factors (condition, age, net density; household factors (number of rooms [2006] or sleeping spaces [2007], IRS, women's knowledge and school attendance [2007 only], wealth, altitude; and cluster level factors (rural or urban were investigated in univariate and multi-variable models for each survey. Results In 2006, increased net use was associated with: age 25-49 years (adjusted (a OR = 1.4, 95% confidence interval (CI 1.2-1.7 compared to children U5; female gender (aOR = 1.4; 95% CI 1.2-1.5; fewer nets with holes (Ptrend = 0.002; and increasing net density (Ptrend [all nets in HH good] = 1.6; 95% CI 1.2-2.1; increasing net density (Ptrend [per additional space] = 0.6, 95% CI 0.5-0.7; more old nets (aOR [all nets in HH older than 12 months] = 0.5; 95% CI 0.3-0.7; and increasing household altitude (Ptrend Conclusion In both surveys, net use was more likely by women, if nets had fewer holes and were at higher net per person density within households. School-age children and young adults were much less likely to use a net. Increasing availability of nets within households (i.e. increasing net density, and improving net condition while focusing on education and promotion of net use, especially in school-age children

New gas distributor for fluidized beds prevents hot particles from reacting on it and forming hard crust. In reduction of iron ore in fluidized bed, ore particles do not sinter on distributor and perhaps clog it or otherwise interfere with gas flow. Distributor also relatively cool. In fluidized-bed production of silicon, inflowing silane does not decompose until within bed of hot silicon particles and deposits on them. Plates of spiral distributor arranged to direct incoming gas into spiral flow. Turbulence in flow reduces frequency of contact between fluidized-bed particles and distributor.

In preparation for the time-phased net zero energy requirement for new federal buildings starting in 2020, set forth in Executive Order 13514, NASA requested that the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to develop a roadmap for NASA's compliance. NASA detailed a Statement of Work that requested information on strategic, organizational, and tactical aspects of net zero energy buildings. In response, this document presents a high-level approach to net zero energy planning, design, construction, and operations, based on NREL's first-hand experience procuring net zero energy construction, and based on NREL and other industry research on net zero energy feasibility. The strategic approach to net zero energy starts with an interpretation of the executive order language relating to net zero energy. Specifically, this roadmap defines a net zero energy acquisition process as one that sets an aggressive energy use intensity goal for the building in project planning, meets the reduced demand goal through energy efficiency strategies and technologies, then adds renewable energy in a prioritized manner, using building-associated, emission- free sources first, to offset the annual energy use required at the building; the net zero energy process extends through the life of the building, requiring a balance of energy use and production in each calendar year.

Full Text Available Modeling is one of the most important tools to study complex systems. Components of both continuous and discrete nature are present in the behavior of contemporary economic systems. The article uses formalism of nested hybrid Petri nets as a tool to study complex economic systems. The author describes basic approaches of simulation modelling, concepts of classical Petri nets, modified means of nested hybrid Petri nets, benefits of their use for systems modeling. The article presents the concept of a universal system of simulation modeling. On the basis of considered approaches the article proposes to develop a universal system of simulation modeling on the basis of the modified machine Petri nets

Pro Agile .NET Development with SCRUM guides you through a real-world ASP.NET project and shows how agile methodology is put into practice. There is plenty of literature on the theory behind agile methodologies, but no book on the market takes the concepts of agile practices and applies these in a practical manner to an end-to-end ASP.NET project, especially the estimating, requirements and management aspects of a project. Pro Agile .NET Development with SCRUM takes you through the initial stages of a project - gathering requirements and setting up an environment - through to the development a

Intermediate and advanced coverage of Visual Basic 2010 and .NET 4 for professional developers. If you've already covered the basics and want to dive deep into VB and .NET topics that professional programmers use most, this is your book. You'll find a quick review of introductory topics-always helpful-before the author team of experts moves you quickly into such topics as data access with ADO.NET, Language Integrated Query (LINQ), security, ASP.NET web programming with Visual Basic, Windows workflow, threading, and more. You'll explore all the new features of Visual Basic 2010 as well as all t

The ASP.NET MVC 4 Framework is the latest evolution of Microsoft's ASP.NET web platform. It provides a high-productivity programming model that promotes cleaner code architecture, test-driven development, and powerful extensibility, combined with all the benefits of ASP.NET. ASP.NET MVC 4 contains a number of significant advances over previous versions. New mobile and desktop templates (employing adaptive rendering) are included together with support for jQuery Mobile for the first time. New display modes allow your application to select views based on the browser that's making the request whi

Petri Nets were introduced and still successfully used to analyze and model discrete event systems especially in engineering and computer sciences such as in automatic control. Recently this discrete Petri Nets formalism was successfully extended to continuous and hybrid systems. This monograph presents a well written and clearly organized introduction in the standard methods of Petri Nets with the aim to reach an accurate understanding of continuous and hybrid Petri Nets, while preserving the consistency of basic concepts throughout the book. The book is a monograph as well as a didactic tool

When designing complex systems, mechanisms for structuring, composing, and reusing system components are crucial. Today, there are many approaches for equipping Petri nets with such mechanisms. In the context of defining a standard interchange format for Petri nets, modular PNML was defined....... Moreover, we present and discuss some more advanced features of modular Petri nets that could be included in the standard. This way, we provide a formal foundation and a basis for a discussion of features to be included in the upcoming standard of a module concept for Petri nets in general and for high...

Knowledge of the equilibrium bed-concentration is vital to mathematical modeling of the river-bed deformation associated with suspended load but previous investigations only dealt with the reference concentration of uniform sediment because of difficulties in observation of the bed-concentration. This work is a first attempt to develop a theoretical formula for the equilibrium bed-concentration of any fraction of nonuniform sediment defined at the bed-surface. The formula is based on a stochastic-mechanistic model for the exchange of nonuniform sediment near the bed, and described as a function of incipient motion probability, non-ceasing probability, pick-up probability, and the ratio of the average single-step continuous motion time to static time. Comparison of bed-concentration calculated from the proposed formula with the measured data showed satisfactory agreement, indicating the present formula can be used for solving the differential equation governing the motion of suspended load.

We employ a numerical model to study the development of sorted bed forms under a variety of hydrodynamic and sedimentary conditions. Results indicate that increased variability in wave height decreases the growth rate of the features and can potentially give rise to complicated, a priori unpredictable, behavior. This happens because the system responds to a change in wave characteristics by attempting to self-organize into a patterned seabed of different geometry and spacing. The new wavelength might not have enough time to emerge before a new change in wave characteristics occurs, leading to less regular seabed configurations. The new seabed configuration is also highly dependent on the preexisting morphology, which further limits the possibility of predicting future behavior. For the same reasons, variability in the mean current magnitude and direction slows down the growth of features and causes patterns to develop that differ from classical sorted bed forms. Spatial variability in grain size distribution and different types of net sediment aggradation/degradation can also result in the development of sorted bed forms characterized by a less regular shape. Numerical simulations qualitatively agree with observed geometry (spacing and height) of sorted bed forms. Also in agreement with observations is that at shallower depths, sorted bed forms are more likely to be affected by changes in the forcing conditions, which might also explain why, in shallow waters, sorted bed forms are described as ephemeral features. Finally, simulations indicate that the different sorted bed form shapes and patterns observed in the field might not necessarily be related to diverse physical mechanisms. Instead, variations in sorted bed form characteristics may result from variations in local hydrodynamic and/or sedimentary conditions.

We employ a numerical model to study the development of sorted bed forms under a variety of hydrodynamic and sedimentary conditions. Results indicate that increased variability in wave height decreases the growth rate of the features and can potentially give rise to complicated, a priori unpredictable, behavior. This happens because the system responds to a change in wave characteristics by attempting to self-organize into a patterned seabed of different geometry and spacing. The new wavelength might not have enough time to emerge before a new change in wave characteristics occurs, leading to less regular seabed configurations. The new seabed configuration is also highly dependent on the preexisting morphology, which further limits the possibility of predicting future behavior. For the same reasons, variability in the mean current magnitude and direction slows down the growth of features and causes patterns to develop that differ from classical sorted bed forms. Spatial variability in grain size distribution and different types of net sediment aggradation/degradation can also result in the development of sorted bed forms characterized by a less regular shape. Numerical simulations qualitatively agree with observed geometry (spacing and height) of sorted bed forms. Also in agreement with observations is that at shallower depths, sorted bed forms are more likely to be affected by changes in the forcing conditions, which might also explain why, in shallow waters, sorted bed forms are described as ephemeral features. Finally, simulations indicate that the different sorted bed form shapes and patterns observed in the field might not necessarily be related to diverse physical mechanisms. Instead, variations in sorted bed form characteristics may result from variations in local hydrodynamic and/or sedimentary conditions.

Companies generally have set prices on the Internet in two ways. Many start-ups have offered untenably low prices in a rush to capture first-mover advantage. Many incumbents have simply charged the same prices on-line as they do off-line. Either way, companies are missing a big opportunity. The fundamental value of the Internet lies not in lowering prices or making them consistent but in optimizing them. After all, if it's easy for customers to compare prices on the Internet, it's also easy for companies to track customers' behavior and adjust prices accordingly. The Net lets companies optimize prices in three ways. First, it lets them set and announce prices with greater precision. Different prices can be tested easily, and customers' responses can be collected instantly. Companies can set the most profitable prices, and they can tap into previously hidden customer demand. Second, because it's so easy to change prices on the Internet, companies can adjust prices in response to even small fluctuations in market conditions, customer demand, or competitors' behavior. Third, companies can use the clickstream data and purchase histories that it collects through the Internet to segment customers quickly. Then it can offer segment-specific prices or promotions immediately. By taking full advantage of the unique possibilities afforded by the Internet to set prices with precision, adapt to changing circumstances quickly, and segment customers accurately, companies can get their pricing right. It's one of the ultimate drivers of e-business success.

This paper retraces, collects, and summarises contributions of the authors - in collaboration with others - on the theme of Petri nets and their categorical relationships to other models of concurrency.......This paper retraces, collects, and summarises contributions of the authors - in collaboration with others - on the theme of Petri nets and their categorical relationships to other models of concurrency....

A regular problem in regression analysis is estimating the comparative importance of the predictors in the model. This work considers the 'net effects', or shares of the predictors in the coefficient of the multiple determination, which is a widely used characteristic of the quality of a regression model. Estimation of the net effects can be a…

Coloured Petri Nets (CP-nets or CPN) is a graphical oriented language for design, specification, simulation and verification of systems. It is in particular well- suited for systems in which communication, synchronisation and resource sharing are important. Typical examples of application areas a...

This report documents the latest trends in net tuition for American higher education. Affordability has become a topic of concern for many, but there is a lack of information on the relevant concepts of tuition, primarily published vs. net. This report seeks to shed light on this topic. While few doubt that published tuition rates (sticker price)…

We introduce a novel technique for checking reachability in Petri nets that relies on a recently introduced compositional algebra of nets. We prove that the technique is correct, and discuss our implementation. We report promising experimental results on some well-known examples.

Net analyte signal statistical quality control (NAS-SQC) is a new methodology to perform multivariate product quality monitoring based on the net analyte signal approach. The main advantage of NAS-SQC is that the systematic variation in the product due to the analyte (or property) of interest is sep

Information about Link-Net, a new rail car information facility available on Netscape, was presented. Link-Net was developed by Ontario`s Procor Limited. It can be used to find a comprehensive list of data on rail fleet management, down to details about the status of single cars. 6 figs.

Direct laser fabrication (DLF) and Net shape HIPping are two net shape manufacturing technologies which are being studied in the IRC. The direct... laser fabrication technique can produce 3-D components from their CAD files from metal powder and using a laser, the movement of which follows the paths

This thesis deals with usage of MVC (Model View Controller) technology in web development on ASP.NET platform from Microsoft. Mainly it deals with latest version of framework ASP.NET MVC 3. First part describes MVC architecture and the second describes usage of MVC in certain parts of web application an comparing with PHP.

Reviews the literature on Internet information policy: an awareness of new policy issues, attempts to apply existing legal regulations to new processes, and the need for new policies for the Net. Explores policy issues that affect the structure of government, the economy, society, designers of the Net, and international issues. Contains 658…

We present the rationale and design of S-Net, a coordination language for asynchronous stream processing. The language achieves a near-complete separation between the application code, written in any conventional programming language, and the coordination/communication code written in S-Net. Our app

To explore the safety of the standard and the low hospital bed, we report on a microanalysis of 15 patients' ability to ingress, move about the bed, and egress. The 15 participants were purposefully selected with various disabilities. Bed conditions were randomized with side rails up or down and one low bed with side rails down. We explored the patients' use of the side rails, bed height, ability to lift their legs onto the mattress, and ability to turn, egress, and walk back to the chair. The standard bed was too high for some participants, both for ingress and egress. Side rails were used by most participants when entering, turning in bed, and exiting. We recommend that side rails be reconsidered as a means to facilitate in-bed movement, ingress, and egress. Furthermore, single deck height settings for all patients are not optimal. Low beds as a safety measure must be re-evaluated.

Under the sponsorship of the United States Department of Energy, Foster Wheeler Development Corporation, and its team members, Westinghouse, Gilbert/Commonwealth, and the Institute of Gas Technology are developing second-generation pressurized fluidized bed combustion technology capable of achieving net plant efficiency in excess of 45 percent based on the higher heating value of the coal. A three-phase program entails design and costing of a 500 MWe power plant and identification of developments needed to commercialize this technology (Phase 1), testing of individual components (Phase 2), and finally testing these components in an integrated mode (Phase 3). This paper briefly describes the results of the first two phases as well as the progress on the third phase. Since other projects which use the same technology are in construction or in negotiation stages-namely, the Power System Development Facility and the Four Rivers Energy Modernization Projects-brief descriptions of these are also included.

Remote-sensing infrared spectroscopy is the principal field of investigation for planetary surfaces composition. Past, present and future missions to the solar system bodies include in their payload, instruments measuring the emerging radiation in the infrared range. Apart from measuring the reflected radiance, more and more spacecrafts are equipped with instruments measuring directly the emitted radiation from the planetary surface. The emitted radiation is not only a function of the composition of the material but also of its texture and especially the grain size distribution. For the interpretation of the measured data an emissivity spectral library of planetary analogue materials in grain size fractions appropriate for planetary surfaces is needed. The Berlin emissivity database (BED) presented here is focused on relatively fine-grained size separates, providing thereby a realistic basis for the interpretation of thermal emission spectra of planetary regoliths. The BED is therefore complimentary to existing thermal emission libraries, like the ASU library for example. BED currently contains emissivity spectra of plagioclase and potassium feldspars, low Ca and high Ca pyroxenes, olivine, elemental sulfur, Martian analogue minerals and volcanic soils, and a lunar highland soil sample measured in the wavelength range from 7 to 22 μm as a function of particle size. For each sample we measured the spectra of four particle size separates ranging from <25 to 250 μm. The device we used is built at DLR (Berlin) and is coupled to a Fourier-transform infrared spectrometer Bruker IFS 88 purged with dry air and equipped with a nitrogen-cooled MCT detector. All spectra were acquired with a spectral resolution of 4 cm -1. We are currently working on upgrading our emissivity facility. A new spectrometer (Bruker VERTEX 80 V) and new detectors will allow us to measure the emissivity of samples in the wavelength range from 1 to 50 μm in a vacuum environment. This will be

We present the simulation results of the net charge fluctuation in Au+Au collisions at √Snn=130 GeV from a dynamic model, JPCIAE, and its revisions. The simulations are done for the quark-gluon matter, the directly produced pions, the pion matter, and the hadron matter. The simulated net charge fluctuation of the quark-gluon matter is close to the thermal model prediction for the quark-gluon gas. However, the discrepancy exists comparing the simulated net charge fluctuation for directly produced pions and the pion matter with the thermal model prediction for pion gas and the resonance pion gas, respectively. The net charge fluctuation of hadron matter from default JPCIAE simulations is nearly 3.5 times larger than quark-gluon matter. A discussion is given for the net charge fluctuation as an evidence of QGP phase transition.

Petri nets do not designate a single modeling formalism. In fact, newcomers to the field confess sometimes to be a little puzzled by the diversity of formalisms that are recognized under this "umbrella". Disregarding some extensions to the theoretical modeling capabilities, and looking at the level of abstraction of the formalisms, Condition/Event, Elementary, Place/Transition, Predicate/Transition, Colored, Object Oriented... net systems are frequently encountered in the literature. On the other side, provided with appropriate interpretative extensions, Controled Net Systems, Marking Diagrams (the Petri net generalization of State Diagrams), or the many-many variants in which time can be explicitly incorporated -Time(d), Deterministic, (Generalized) Stochastic, Fuzzy...- are defined. This represents another way to define practical formalisms that can be obtained by the "cro- product" of the two mentioned dimensions. Thus Petri nets constitute a modeling paradigm, understandable in a broad sense as "the total...

with their own set up, since the potential costs and efforts could not pay back in term of expected research results. Software Defined Radio solutions offer an easy way to communication researchers for the development of customized research test beds. While several hardware products are commercially available......, the software is most of the times open source and ready to use for third party users. Even though the software solution developers claim complete easiness in the development of custom applications, in reality there are a number of practical hardware and software issues that research groups need to face, before...... inspiration to researchers on how to possibly build their own customized systems....

To be bedridden reduces one's capacity to move and produces muscular debility that affects the respiratory system leading to a decreased effectiveness in expectoration, the ability to spit up sputum. The pulmonary therapy system integrated in a bed is the result of applying motorized elements to the articulation points of the bad in order to achieve safe positions at therapeutic angles, which improve the breathing-perfusion (blood flow) relationship. This system also makes it possible to apply vibration waves to the patient which favor the elimination of bronchial-pulmonary secretions, the rehabilitation of the bedridden patient and decrease the work load for nursing personnel.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) at the Dryden Flight Research Center (DFRC) has been conducting flight-test research using an F-15 aircraft (figure 1). This aircraft has been specially modified to interface a neural net (NN) controller as part of a single-string Airborne Research Test System (ARTS) computer with the existing quad-redundant flight control system (FCC) shown in figure 2. The NN commands are passed to FCC channels 2 and 4 and are cross channel data linked (CCDL) to the other computers as shown. Numerous types of fault-detection monitors exist in the FCC when the NN mode is engaged; these monitors would cause an automatic disengagement of the NN in the event of a triggering fault. Unfortunately, these monitors still may not prevent a possible NN hard-over command from coming through to the control laws. Therefore, an additional and unique safety monitor was designed for a single-string source that allows authority at maximum actuator rates but protects the pilot and structural loads against excessive g-limits in the case of a NN hard-over command input. This additional monitor resides in the FCCs and is executed before the control laws are computed. This presentation describes a floating limiter (FL) concept1 that was developed and successfully test-flown for this program (figure 3). The FL computes the rate of change of the NN commands that are input to the FCC from the ARTS. A window is created with upper and lower boundaries, which is constantly floating and trying to stay centered as the NN command rates are changing. The limiter works by only allowing the window to move at a much slower rate than those of the NN commands. Anywhere within the window, however, full rates are allowed. If a rate persists in one direction, it will eventually hit the boundary and be rate-limited to the floating limiter rate. When this happens, a persistent counter begins and after a limit is reached, a NN disengage command is generated. The

Malaria vectors have acquired widespread resistance throughout sub-Saharan Africa to many of the currently used insecticides. Hence, there is an urgent need to develop alternative strategies including the development of new insecticides for effective management of insecticide resistance. To maintain progress against malaria, it is necessary to identify other residual insecticides for mosquito nets. In the present WHOPES phase II analogue study, the utility of chlorfenapyr, a pyrrole class insecticide mixed with alpha-cypermethrin on a long-lasting mosquito bednet was evaluated against Anopheles gambiae s.l. Bednets treated with chlorfenapyr and alpha-cypermethrin and mixture of both compounds were tested for their efficacy on mosquitoes. Washed (20 times) and unwashed of each type of treated nets and were tested according to WHOPES guidelines. Efficacy of nets were expressed in terms of blood-feeding inhibition rate, deterrence, induced exophily and mortality rate. The evaluation was conducted in experimental huts of Vallée du Kou seven (VK7) in Burkina Faso (West Africa) following WHOPES phase II guidelines. In addition, a WHOPES phase I evaluation was also performed. Mixture treated nets killed significantly (P 0.05) different from nets treated with chlorfenapyr 200 mg/m(2) unwashed (86%). The washed and unwashed nets treated with the mixtures resulted in personal protection against An. gambiae s.l. biting 34 and 44%. In contrast the personal protection observed for washed and unwashed alpha-cypermethrin treated nets generated (14 and 24%), and chlorfenapyr solo treated net was rather low (22%). Among all nets trialled, the combination of chlorfenapyr and alpha-cypermethrin on bednets provided better mortality in phase II after 20 washes. Results suggest that this combination could be a potential insecticide resistance management tool for preventing malaria transmission in areas compromised by the spread of pyrethroid resistance.

Pro Visual C++/CLI and the .NET 3.5 Platform is about writing .NET applications using C++/CLI. While readers are learning the ins and outs of .NET application development, they will also be learning the syntax of C++, both old and new to .NET. Readers will also gain a good understanding of the .NET architecture. This is truly a .NET book applying C++ as its development language not another C++ syntax book that happens to cover .NET.

Male, 62. Bipolar disorder. Bordeline personality disorder. - Bed bug infestation. Psychiatry. Unusual clinical course. In the past decade, bed bug infestations have been increasingly common in high income countries. Psychological consequences of these infestations are rarely examined in the scientific literature. We present a case, based on a coroner's investigation report, of a woman with previous psychiatric morbidity who jumped to her death following repeated bed bug infestations in her apartment. Our case report shows that the bed bug infestations were the likely trigger for the onset a negative psychological state that ultimately led to suicide. Given the recent surge in infestations, rapid action needs to be taken not only in an attempt to control and eradicate the bed bugs but also to adequately care for those infested by bed bugs.

Pressure ulcer is one of the most prevalent problems for bed-bound patients in hospitals and nursing homes. Pressure ulcers are painful for patients and costly for healthcare systems. Accurate in-bed posture analysis can significantly help in preventing pressure ulcers. Specifically, bed inclination (back angle) is a factor contributing to pressure ulcer development. In this paper, an efficient methodology is proposed to classify bed inclination. Our approach uses pressure values collected from a commercial pressure mat system. Then, by applying a number of image processing and machine learning techniques, the approximate degree of bed is estimated and classified. The proposed algorithm was tested on 15 subjects with various sizes and weights. The experimental results indicate that our method predicts bed inclination in three classes with 80.3% average accuracy.

U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior — These are shapefiles and ARC/INFO polygon coverages showing the isopachs of total net coal in beds greater than or equal to 1.2' thick for the B and D coal zones,...

Full Text Available This paper analyzes media and public discourses surrounding net neutrality, with particular attention to public utility philosophy, from a critical perspective. The article suggests that further public education about net neutrality would be beneficial. The first portion of this paper provides a survey of the existing literature surrounding net neutrality, highlighting the contentious debate between market-based and public interest perspectives. In order to contextualize the debate, an overview of public utility philosophy is provided, shedding light on how the Internet can be conceptualized as a public good. Following this discussion, an analysis of mainstream media is presented, exploring how the media represents the issue of net neutrality and whether or not the Internet is discussed through the lens of public utility. To further examine how the net neutrality debate is being addressed, and to see the potential impacts of media discourses on the general public, the results of a focus group are reported and analyzed. Finally, a discussion assesses the implications of the net neutrality debate as presented through media discourses, highlighting the future of net neutrality as an important policy issue.

Complete coverage of all key .NET 4 and Visual Studio 2010 languages and technologies. .NET 4 is Microsoft's latest version of their core programming platform, and Visual Studio 2010 is the toolset that helps write .NET 4 applications. This comprehensive resource offers one-stop shopping for all you need to know to get productive with .NET 4. Experienced author and .NET guru Mitchel Sellers reviews all the important new features of .NET 4, including .NET charting and ASP.NET charting, ASP.NET dynamic data and jQuery, and the addition of F# as a supported package language. The expansive coverag

A packed fluidized bed blanket for a fusion reactor providing for efficient radiation absorption for energy recovery, efficient neutron absorption for nuclear transformations, ease of blanket removal, processing and replacement, and on-line fueling/refueling. The blanket of the reactor contains a bed of stationary particles during reactor operation, cooled by a radial flow of coolant. During fueling/refueling, an axial flow is introduced into the bed in stages at various axial locations to fluidize the bed. When desired, the fluidization flow can be used to remove particles from the blanket.

The computer network is not only of benefit to people, but also helpful for the spreading of viruses. The net-viruses spread more widely and rapidly than the traditional viruses, and network has become the major path of the virus spreading. The author analyzes the mode of the net-virus spreading, including E-mail spreading, positive scanning spreading and through-server spreading. Then some defense strategies in the anti-virus field are introduced, and some countermeasures of the net computer users are discussed.

This paper documents the trends in the life-cycle profiles of net worth and housing equity between 1983 and 2004. The net worth of older households significantly increased during the housing boom of recent years. However, net worth grew by more than housing equity, in part because other assets also appreciated at the same time. Moreover, the younger elderly offset rising house prices by increasing their housing debt, and used some of the proceeds to invest in other assets. We also consider ho...

A new kind of planetary exploration mission for Mars is being developed in collaboration between the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), Lavochkin Association (LA), Space Research Institute (IKI) and Institutio Nacional de Tecnica Aerospacial (INTA). The Mars MetNet mission [1] is based on a new semi-hard landing vehicle called MetNet Lander (MNL). The scientific payload of the Mars MetNet Precursor mission is divided into three categories: Atmospheric instruments, Optical devices and Composition and structure devices. Each of the payload instruments will provide crucial scientific data about the Martian atmospheric phenomena.

KM3NeT is a future research infrastructure in the Mediterranean Sea, hosting a multi-cubic-kilometre neutrino telescope and nodes for Earth and Sea sciences. In this report we shortly summarise the genesis of the KM3NeT project and present key elements of its technical design. The physics objectives of the KM3NeT neutrino telescope and some selected sensitivity estimates are discussed. Finally, some first results from prototype operations and the next steps towards implementation – in particular the first construction phase in 2014/15 – are described.

Recent results by Spitters et. al. suggest that quantum phase space can usefully be regarded as a ringed topos via a process called Bohrification. They show that quantum kinematics can then be interpreted as classical kinematics, internal to this ringed topos. We extend these ideas from quantum mechanics to algebraic quantum field theory: from a net of observables we construct a presheaf of quantum phase spaces. We can then naturally express the causal locality of the net as a descent condition on the corresponding presheaf of ringed toposes: we show that the net of observables is local, precisely when the presheaf of ringed toposes satisfies descent by a local geometric morphism.

This volume contains the proceedings of the 13th International Conference onApplication and Theory of Petri Nets, held in Sheffield, England, in June 1992. The aim of the Petri net conferences is to create a forum for discussing progress in the application and theory of Petri nets. Typically, the....... Balbo and W. Reisig, 18 submitted papers, and seven project papers. The submitted papers and project presentations were selectedby the programme committee and a panel of referees from a large number of submissions....

The objective of the CERTS Microgrid Test Bed project was to enhance the ease of integrating energy sources into a microgrid. The project accomplished this objective by developing and demonstrating three advanced techniques, collectively referred to as the CERTS Microgrid concept, that significantly reduce the level of custom field engineering needed to operate microgrids consisting of generating sources less than 100kW. The techniques comprising the CERTS Microgrid concept are: 1) a method for effecting automatic and seamless transitions between grid-connected and islanded modes of operation, islanding the microgrid's load from a disturbance, thereby maintaining a higher level of service, without impacting the integrity of the utility's electrical power grid; 2) an approach to electrical protection within a limited source microgrid that does not depend on high fault currents; and 3) a method for microgrid control that achieves voltage and frequency stability under islanded conditions without requiring high-speed communications between sources. These techniques were demonstrated at a full-scale test bed built near Columbus, Ohio and operated by American Electric Power. The testing fully confirmed earlier research that had been conducted initially through analytical simulations, then through laboratory emulations,and finally through factory acceptance testing of individual microgrid components. The islanding and resychronization method met all Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Standard 1547 and power quality requirements. The electrical protection system was able to distinguish between normal and faulted operation. The controls were found to be robust under all conditions, including difficult motor starts and high impedance faults. The results from these tests are expected to lead to additional testing of enhancements to the basic techniques at the test bed to improve the business case for microgrid technologies, as well to field

The control of cell division is critical to organogenesis, but how this control is achieved is not fully understood. We found that mutations in bed-3, encoding a BED Zn-finger domain transcription factor, confer a phenotype where a specific set of cell divisions during vulval organogenesis is lost. Unlike general cell cycle regulators in Caenorhabditis elegans, the function of bed-3 is restricted to specific lineages. Transcriptional reporters suggest that bed-3 is expressed in a limited numb...

Hybrid combined cycle processes have been presented as possibilities for power generation in the future. In the processes based on partial gasification of coal, the solid materials removed from a gasifier (i.e. fly ash and bed char) contain unburned fuel, which is burned either in an atmospheric or a pressurised fluidised-bed. Pressurised fluidised-bed (PFB) combustion of gasification residues were studied experimentally by Helsinki University of Technology. The gasification residues, i.e. cyclone fines and bed chars, came from pilot scale PFB gasification tests of bituminous coals. The combustion efficiency was high in cyclone fines combustion. The calcium sulphide oxidised effectively to calcium sulphate in the combustion of cyclone fines. In bed char combustion the residual sulphide contents in solids after combustion were still relatively high. In general, sulphur dioxide emissions in residue combustion were low. The recarbonation of calcium oxide was observed in bed char combustion. Fuel-N conversion to NO{sub x} during bed char combustion and in most of the test runs with cyclone fines was higher than in bituminous coal combustion. In bed char combustion the conversion was significantly higher than in cyclone fines combustion. NO{sub x} emissions increased with increasing excess air for both residues, as was expected. In bed char combustion the highest NO{sub x} emissions were measured at higher pressure. Calculated mass reactivity values of equal particle size of all bed chars studied had similar trends with burnout. The biggest particles had the lowest reactivity values throughout the combustion, while reactivity for finer particles was at considerably higher level and sharply increases with burnout. In the constant combustion conditions used in the tests, no significant differences were observed in rate-controlling mechanisms for bed char fractions studied. 25 refs., 13 figs., 15 tab.

The operating and mass transfer characteristics of rotating foam metal beds were studied to determine the potential for flue gas desulfurization. This is a final technical report on the work supported by DOE [number sign]FG22-87-PC79924. The report is divided into two sections, Part 1 deals primarily with the operating characteristics of rotating beds, and Part 2 covers the mass transfer characteristics of S0[sub 2] absorption in water-lime slurries. Rotating foam metal beds are in essence packed towers operated in high gravitational fields. The foam metal bed is in the form of a cylindrical donut, or torus, and is rotated to produced the high centrifugal forces. The liquid phase enters the bed at the inner surface of the torus and is pulled by the field through the bed. Gas flows countercurrent to the liquid. The bed packing can have a very large specific surface areas and not flood. Possible benefits include much smaller height of a transfer unit resulting in smaller equipment and supporting structures, reduced solvent inventory, faster response with improved process control, reduced pressure drop, and shorter startup and shut-down times. This work is concerned broadly with the operating characteristics of rotating beds, the objectives being to (1) determine the pressure drop through the rotating bed; (2) determine the power required to operate the beds, (3) investigate the residence time distribution of the liquid phase in the beds; and (4) determine the mass transfer coefficients of S0[sub 2] absorption. Three packings of differing specific surface areas were studied, with areas ranging from 656 to 2952 m[sub 2]/m[sub 3]. Liquid flow rates to 36 kg/s*m[sub 2], gas flow rate to 2.2 kg/s*m[sub 2], and gravitational fields to 300 g were covered in this study.

The objective of the CERTS Microgrid Test Bed project was to enhance the ease of integrating energy sources into a microgrid. The project accomplished this objective by developing and demonstrating three advanced techniques, collectively referred to as the CERTS Microgrid concept, that significantly reduce the level of custom field engineering needed to operate microgrids consisting of generating sources less than 100kW. The techniques comprising the CERTS Microgrid concept are: 1 a method for effecting automatic and seamless transitions between grid-connected and islanded modes of operation, islanding the microgrid's load from a disturbance, thereby maintaining a higher level of service, without impacting the integrity of the utility's electrical power grid; 2 an approach to electrical protection within a limited source microgrid that does not depend on high fault currents; and 3 a method for microgrid control that achieves voltage and frequency stability under islanded conditions without requiring high-speed communications between sources.

Full Text Available Blood-feeding insects have evolved resistance to various insecticides (organochlorines, pyrethroids, carbamates, etc. through gene mutations and increased metabolism. Bed bugs (Cimex lectularius are hematophagous ectoparasites that are poised to become one of the major pests in households throughout the United States. Currently, C. lectularius has attained a high global impact status due to its sudden and rampant resurgence. Resistance to pesticides is one factor implicated in this phenomenon. Although much emphasis has been placed on target sensitivity, little to no knowledge is available on the role of key metabolic players (e.g., cytochrome P450s and glutathione S-transferases towards pesticide resistance in C. lectularius. In this review, we discuss different modes of resistance (target sensitivity, penetration resistance, behavioral resistance, and metabolic resistance with more emphasis on metabolic resistance.

Blood-feeding insects have evolved resistance to various insecticides (organochlorines, pyrethroids, carbamates, etc.) through gene mutations and increased metabolism. Bed bugs (Cimex lectularius) are hematophagous ectoparasites that are poised to become one of the major pests in households throughout the United States. Currently, C. lectularius has attained a high global impact status due to its sudden and rampant resurgence. Resistance to pesticides is one factor implicated in this phenomenon. Although much emphasis has been placed on target sensitivity, little to no knowledge is available on the role of key metabolic players (e.g., cytochrome P450s and glutathione S-transferases) towards pesticide resistance in C. lectularius. In this review, we discuss different modes of resistance (target sensitivity, penetration resistance, behavioral resistance, and metabolic resistance) with more emphasis on metabolic resistance.

A fluidized bed coal reactor includes a combination nozzle-injector ash-removal unit formed by a grid of closely spaced open channels, each containing a worm screw conveyor, which function as continuous ash removal troughs. A pressurized air-coal mixture is introduced below the unit and is injected through the elongated nozzles formed by the spaces between the channels. The ash build-up in the troughs protects the worm screw conveyors as does the cooling action of the injected mixture. The ash layer and the pressure from the injectors support a fluidized flame combustion zone above the grid which heats water in boiler tubes disposed within and/or above the combustion zone and/or within the walls of the reactor.

Objective: To examine whether physician-patient communication in multi-bedded rooms differs from communication in single rooms during ward rounds. Methods: Ward rounds in single bedded patient rooms and ward rounds in four bedded rooms were audiotaped and analyzed with an adapted version of MIARS.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — RadNet Deployable Monitoring is designed to collect radiological and meteorological information and data asset needed to establish the impact of radiation levels on...

We are developing a new kind of planetary exploration mission for Mars in collaboration between the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), Lavochkin Association (LA), Space Research Institute (IKI) and Institutio Nacional de Tecnica Aerospacial (INTA). The Mars MetNet mission is based on a new semi-hard landing vehicle called MetNet Lander (MNL). The scientific payload of the Mars MetNet Precursor [1] mission is divided into three categories: Atmospheric instruments, Optical devices and Composition and structure devices. Each of the payload instruments will provide significant insights in to the Martian atmospheric behavior. The key technologies of the MetNet Lander have been qualified and the electrical qualification model (EQM) of the payload bay has been built and successfully tested.

New kind of planetary exploration mission for Mars is under development in collaboration between the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), Lavochkin Association (LA), Space Research Institute (IKI) and Institutio Nacional de Tecnica Aerospacial (INTA). The Mars MetNet mission is based on a new semihard landing vehicle called MetNet Lander (MNL). The scientific payload of the Mars MetNet Precursor [1] mission is divided into three categories: Atmospheric instruments, Optical devices and Composition and structure devices. Each of the payload instruments will provide significant insights in to the Martian atmospheric behavior. The key technologies of the MetNet Lander have been qualified and the electrical qualification model (EQM) of the payload bay has been built and successfully tested.

Full Text Available This tutorial introduces the reader to Omeka.net, a free platform for building collection-based websites, ideal for museums and archives, but also scholars looking to build a digital exhibit.

Described are the formation of DEUS (Danish Enterprise University System) consortium and DEUS TraiNet as examples of European collaboration program. The organization, technology, computer conferencing, service, and multimedia training of the programs are summarized. (YP)

Full Text Available Abstract Background Insecticide-treated nets (ITN and long-lasting insecticidal treated nets (LLIN are important means of malaria prevention. Although there is consensus regarding their importance, there is uncertainty as to which delivery strategies are optimal for dispensing these life saving interventions. A targeted mass distribution of free LLINs to children under five and pregnant women was implemented in Zanzibar between August 2005 and January 2006. The outcomes of this distribution among children under five were evaluated, four to nine months after implementation. Methods Two cross-sectional surveys were conducted in May 2006 in two districts of Zanzibar: Micheweni (MI on Pemba Island and North A (NA on Unguja Island. Household interviews were conducted with 509 caretakers of under-five children, who were surveyed for socio-economic status, the net distribution process, perceptions and use of bednets. Each step in the distribution process was assessed in all children one to five years of age for unconditional and conditional proportion of success. System effectiveness (the accumulated proportion of success and equity effectiveness were calculated, and predictors for LLIN use were identified. Results The overall proportion of children under five sleeping under any type of treated net was 83.7% (318/380 in MI and 91.8% (357/389 in NA. The LLIN usage was 56.8% (216/380 in MI and 86.9% (338/389 in NA. Overall system effectiveness was 49% in MI and 87% in NA, and equity was found in the distribution scale-up in NA. In both districts, the predicting factor of a child sleeping under an LLIN was caretakers thinking that LLINs are better than conventional nets (OR = 2.8, p = 0.005 in MI and 2.5, p = 0.041 in NA, in addition to receiving an LLIN (OR = 4.9, p Conclusions Targeted free mass distribution of LLINs can result in high and equitable bednet coverage among children under five. However, in order to sustain high effective coverage, there

In order to verify the technical feasibility of the MTCI Pulsed Atmospheric Fluidized Bed Combustor technology, a laboratory-scale system was designed, built and tested. Important aspects of the operational and performance parameters of the system were established experimentally. A considerable amount of the effort was invested in the initial task of constructing an AFBC that would represent a reasonable baseline against which the performance of the PAFBC could be compared. A summary comparison of the performance and emissions data from the MTCI 2 ft {times} 2 ft facility (AFBC and PAFBC modes) with those from conventional BFBC (taller freeboard and recycle operation) and circulating fluidized bed combustion (CFBC) units is given in Table ES-1. The comparison is for typical high-volatile bituminous coals and sorbents of average reactivity. The values indicated for BFBC and CFBC were based on published information. The AFBC unit that was designed to act as a baseline for the comparison was indeed representative of the larger units even at the smaller scale for which it was designed. The PAFBC mode exhibited superior performance in relation to the AFBC mode. The higher combustion efficiency translates into reduced coal consumption and lower system operating cost; the improvement in sulfur capture implies less sorbent requirement and waste generation and in turn lower operating cost; lower NO{sub x} and CO emissions mean ease of site permitting; and greater steam-generation rate translates into less heat exchange surface area and reduced capital cost. Also, the PAFBC performance generally surpasses those of conventional BFBC, is comparable to CFBC in combustion and NO{sub x} emissions, and is better than CFBC in sulfur capture and CO emissions even at the scaled-down size used for the experimental feasibility tests.

We are developing a new kind of planetary exploration mission for Mars - MetNet in situ observation network based on a new semi-hard landing vehicle called the Met-Net Lander (MNL). The eventual scope of the MetNet Mission is to deploy some 20 MNLs on the Martian surface using inflatable descent system structures, which will be supported by observations from the orbit around Mars. Currently we are working on the MetNet Mars Precursor Mission (MMPM) to deploy one MetNet Lander to Mars in the 2009/2011 launch window as a technology and science demonstration mission. The MNL will have a versatile science payload focused on the atmospheric science of Mars. Detailed characterization of the Martian atmospheric circulation patterns, boundary layer phenomena, and climatology cycles, require simultaneous in-situ measurements by a network of observation posts on the Martian surface. The scientific payload of the MetNet Mission encompasses separate instrument packages for the atmospheric entry and descent phase and for the surface operation phase. The MetNet mission concept and key probe technologies have been developed and the critical subsystems have been qualified to meet the Martian environmental and functional conditions. Prototyping of the payload instrumentation with final dimensions was carried out in 2003-2006.This huge development effort has been fulfilled in collaboration between the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), the Russian Lavoschkin Association (LA) and the Russian Space Research Institute (IKI) since August 2001. Currently the INTA (Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial) from Spain is also participating in the MetNet payload development. To understand the behavior and dynamics of the Martian atmosphere, a wealth of simultaneous in situ observations are needed on varying types of Martian orography, terrain and altitude spanning all latitudes and longitudes. This will be performed by the Mars MetNet Mission. In addition to the science aspects the

This book is envisioned for traditional developers and programmers who want to develop client-side applications using the AngularJS framework and ASP.NET Web API 2 with Visual Studio. .NET developers who have already built web applications or web services and who have a fundamental knowledge of HTML, JavaScript, and CSS and want to explore single-page applications will also find this guide useful. Basic knowledge of AngularJS would be helpful.

We are developing a new kind of planetary exploration mission for Mars - MetNet in situ observation network based on a new semi-hard landing vehicle called the Met-Net Lander (MNL). The actual practical mission development work started in January 2009 with participation from various countries and space agencies. The scientific rationale and goals as well as key mission solutions will be discussed. The eventual scope of the MetNet Mission is to deploy some 20 MNLs on the Martian surface using inflatable descent system structures, which will be supported by observations from the orbit around Mars. Currently we are working on the MetNet Mars Precursor Mission (MMPM) to deploy one MetNet Lander to Mars in the 2009/2011 launch window as a technology and science demonstration mission. The MNL will have a versatile science payload focused on the atmospheric science of Mars. Detailed characterization of the Martian atmospheric circulation patterns, boundary layer phenomena, and climatology cycles, require simultaneous in-situ measurements by a network of observation posts on the Martian surface. The scientific payload of the MetNet Mission encompasses separate instrument packages for the atmospheric entry and descent phase and for the surface operation phase. The MetNet mission concept and key probe technologies have been developed and the critical subsystems have been qualified to meet the Martian environmental and functional conditions. This development effort has been fulfilled in collaboration between the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), the Russian Lavoschkin Association (LA) and the Russian Space Research Institute (IKI) since August 2001. Currently the INTA (Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial) from Spain is also participating in the MetNet payload development.

CDMA and TDMA telecommunication techniques were established long time ago, but they have acquired a renewed presence due to the rapidly increasing mobile phones demand. In this paper, we are going to see they are suitable for neural nets, if we leave the concept "connection" between processing units and we adopt the concept "messages" exchanged between them. This may open the door to neural nets with a higher number of processing units and flexible configuration.

Mist netting is the method most commonly used for gathering quantitative information on birds in the American tropics. Point count surveys or other methods often are used in conjunction with netting to reduce some of the many biases associated with netting, specially the failure of stationary nets within 2 m of the ground to sample birds of the tall canopy. We compare totals by both methods. Even close to the ground there are biases related to time of day and mesh size that have not been addressed in tropical studies. Some researchers operate nets all day, others only in the morning or in the morning and evening. Since 1986 we have netted birds and conducted point count surveys at more than 130 sites representing a broad spectrum of habitats in Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala. Using data only from those days when we could operate nets continuously from about dawn to dusk, we compare capture rates throughout the day to show the bias per part-day operations for certain families and species of birds and for the ratio of neotropical migrants to resident birds. More than half of 5000+ birds captured were caught after noon. Trochilidae and parulinae were captured primarily in the morning, Dendrocolaptidae in the middle of the day. Tyrannidae were more active than most birds in early afternoon, and Turdinae had morning and evening peaks. At each site we use a combination of 30-mm and 36-mm nets. The 30-mm mesh consistently captured more seedeaters, gnatcatchers, and small warblers, whereas the 36-mm mesh was more effective for birds of thrush size and larger.

This book contains practical recipes on everything you will need to create task-based parallel programs using C#, .NET 4.5, and Visual Studio. The book is packed with illustrated code examples to create scalable programs.This book is intended to help experienced C# developers write applications that leverage the power of modern multicore processors. It provides the necessary knowledge for an experienced C# developer to work with .NET parallelism APIs. Previous experience of writing multithreaded applications is not necessary.

If you are a Visual Studio 2013 or .NET developer who would like to sharpen your existing skill set and adapt to new .NET technologies, this is the book for you. A basic understanding of .NET and C# is required.

Neutrophils exert potent antimicrobial activities in their role as first-line cellular defenders against infection. The synergistic and collective actions of oxidants and granule proteins, including serine proteases, support the microbial killing in phagosomes, where most neutrophil-mediated antimicrobial action occurs. In addition to phagocytosis, specific stimuli prompt neutrophils to extrude a matrix of DNA, histones, and granule proteins to produce neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), which can trap microbes. Mice lacking the serine proteases necessary for NET production are more susceptible to infection, an observation suggesting that functional NETs are required for host protection. In this issue of the JCI, Sørensen and colleagues characterize neutrophils from a patient with Papillon-Lefèvre syndrome. The patient has an inactivating mutation in the gene encoding dipeptidyl peptidase I, resulting in neutrophils lacking elastase, a serine protease required for NET production. Despite the inability to form NETS, neutrophils from this patient killed pathogens in vitro, and the patient did not exhibit evidence of an increased propensity toward bacterial infections. Together, these results suggest that proteases in human neutrophils are dispensable for protection against bacterial infection and that the ability to generate NETs in vitro does not compromise host defense.

The effective thermal conductivity of adsorbent packed beds of granular zeolite 13X and granular silica gel A in the presence of stagnant steam or air was measured under different conditions of the adsorbent bed temperature, particle size and filler-gas pressure. The measured effective thermal conductivity showed to become smaller with decreasing particle size or decreasing pressure, but it was nearly independent of the bed temperature. When steam was the filler-gas, the rise in the thermal conductivity of the adsorbent particles due to steam adsorption led to the increase in the effective thermal conductivity of the bed, and this effect was not negligible at high steam pressure for the bed of large particle size. It was found that both the predictions of the effective thermal conductivity by the Hayashi et al.'s model and the Bauer-Schlünder model generally agreed well with the measurements, by considering the particle thermal conductivity rise due to steam adsorption. The thermal conductivity of a consolidated bed of granular zeolite 13X was also measured, and it was found to be much larger than that of the packed bed especially at lower pressure. The above prediction models underestimated the effective thermal conductivity of the consolidated bed.

This project studies the particle pressure, which may be thought of as the force exerted by the particulate phase of a multiphase mixture, independently of that exerted by other phases. The project is divided into two parts, one concerning gas and the other liquid fluidized beds. Previous work on gas fluidized beds had suggested that the particle pressures are generated by bubbling action. Thus, for these gas fluidized bed studies, the particle pressure is measured around single bubbles generated in 2-D fluidized beds, using special probes developed especially for this purpose. Liquid beds are immune from bubbling and the particle pressures proved too small to measure directly. However, the major interest in particle pressures in liquid beds lies in their stabilizing effect that arises from the effective elasticity (the derivative of the particle pressure with respect to the void fraction): they impart to the bed. So rather than directly measure the particle pressure, we inferred the values of the elasticity from measurements of instability growth in liquid beds the inference was made by first developing a generic stability model (one with all the normally modeled coefficients left undetermined)and then working backwards to determine the unknown coefficients, including the elasticity.

The Laetolil Beds in Tanzania, 20-30 miles south of Olduvai Gorge, have been extensively sampled by parties under the leadership of Mrs. Dr. Mary D. Leakey, who very kindly sent me Hipparion material collected in 1974, 1975, and 1976. In a restudy of proboscidean material from these beds described

This project studies the particle pressure, which may be thought of as the force exerted by the particulate phase of a multiphase mixture, independently of that exerted by other phases. The project is divided into two parts, one concerning gas and the other liquid fluidized beds. Previous work on gas fluidized beds had suggested that the particle pressures are generated by bubbling action. Thus, for these gas fluidized bed studies, the particle pressure is measured around single bubbles generated in 2-D fluidized beds, using special probes developed especially for this purpose. Liquid beds are immune from bubbling and the particle pressures proved too small to measure directly. However, the major interest in particle pressures in liquid beds lies in their stabilizing effect that arises from the effective elasticity (the derivative of the particle pressure with respect to the void fraction), they impart to the bed. So rather than directly measure the particle pressure, the authors inferred the values of the elasticity from measurements of instability growth in liquid beds; the inference was made by first developing a generic stability model (one with all the normally modeled coefficients left undetermined) and then working backwards to determine the unknown coefficients, including the elasticity.

Bed-levelling experiments are conducted in a straight laboratory channel. The experiments involve a significant fraction of suspended sediment transport. The purpose of the experiments is to provide data for modelling of the direction of sediment transport on a transverse sloping alluvial river bed,

Bed forms of various kinds that evolve naturally on the bottom of sandy coasts and rivers are a result of the kinematics of bed load transport. Based on the group motion of particles in the bed load within the bottom layer, a study on the nonlinear dynamics of bed load transport is presented in this paper. It is found that some development stages, such as the initiation, the equilibrium sediment transport, and the transition from a smooth bed to sand dunes, can be accounted for by different states in the nonlinear system of the bed load transport. It is verified by comparison with experimental data reported by Laboratoire Nationae D'Hydraulique, Chatou, France, that the evolution from a smooth bed to sand dunes is determined by mutation in the bed load transport. This paper presents results that may offer theoretical explanations to the experimental observations. It is also an attempt to apply the state-of-the-art nonlinear science to the classical sediment transport mechanics.

Bed-levelling experiments are conducted in a straight laboratory channel. The experiments involve a significant fraction of suspended sediment transport. The purpose of the experiments is to provide data for modelling of the direction of sediment transport on a transverse sloping alluvial river bed,

Two sets of business-card-sized lists of tips for recognizing bed bugs and the signs of an infestation, including a photo of bed bugs to assist identification. One card is for general use around home or office, the other for travelers.

Since the late 1990s, bed bugs of the species Cimex lectularius and Cimex hemipterus have undergone a worldwide resurgence. These bed bugs are blood-sucking insects that readily bite humans. Cutaneous reactions may occur and can start out as small macular lesions that can develop into distinctive wheals of around 5 cm in diameter, which are accompanied by intense itching. Occasionally, bullous eruptions may result. If bed bugs are numerous, the patient can present with widespread urticaria or eythematous rashes. Often, bites occur in lines along the limbs. Over 40 pathogens have been detected in bed bugs, but there is no definitive evidence that they transmit any disease-causing organisms to humans. Anemia may result when bed bugs are numerous, and their allergens can trigger asthmatic reactions. The misuse of chemicals and other technologies for controlling bed bugs has the potential to have a deleterious impact on human health, while the insect itself can be the cause of significant psychological trauma. The control of bed bugs is challenging and should encompass a multidisciplinary approach utilizing nonchemical means of control and the judicious use of insecticides. For accommodation providers, risk management procedures should be implemented to reduce the potential of bed bug infestations.

Recent research suggests that the resurgence of bed bugs in the U.S. has occurred at an alarming rate. Assumptions have been made that socioeconomic status is not associated with the prevalence of bed bug infestations. Little information is available at the local level, however, about the prevalence of bed bugs in private homes. The authors' pilot study aimed to identify prevalence, knowledge, and concern about bed bugs in one higher income village in Ohio utilizing survey methodology. Responses from 96 individuals who completed the Prevalence, Knowledge, and Concern About Bed Bugs survey were utilized for analysis. The majority of the sample respondents were white and 95% reported that they owned their residence. Only 6% knew someone with bed bugs. Additionally, 52% reported they were somewhat concerned about bed bugs. About 46% reported that they had changed their behavior. For a higher income area, the prevalence was dissimilar to the rate reported in the general public (about 20%). This suggests that bed bugs may be an environmental issue effecting low-income populations disproportionately. Further research is needed in areas of differing socioeconomic levels.

The Laetolil Beds in Tanzania, 20-30 miles south of Olduvai Gorge, have been extensively sampled by parties under the leadership of Mrs. Dr. Mary D. Leakey, who very kindly sent me Hipparion material collected in 1974, 1975, and 1976. In a restudy of proboscidean material from these beds described b

This slide presentation gives an overview of the standardization of bed rest measures. The International Countermeasures Working Group attempted to define and agree internationally on standard measurements for spaceflight based bed rest studies. The group identified the experts amongst several stakeholder agencys. It included information on exercise, muscle, neurological, psychological, bone and cardiovascular measures.

The actual thickness of a given formation perpendicular to the bedding plane is known as the true bed thickness. Petroleum engineers rely on information regarding true bed thickness, particularly in dipping beds and in deviated holes because reservoir volume and isochore maps depend on these properties and not on the measured thickness. True bed thickness can be estimated from information gathered from well logs such as the dipmeter and borehole images. However, when deviations and dips exceed 10 degrees, corrections are needed. In this paper, a folded bed model was proposed to calculate the true bed thickness in the subsurface utilizing well log data. The value of true bed thickness (t) was shown to depend on the angle and the direction of the dip of the measured formation, as well as the drift angle and azimuth of the borehole. A case study from the Cantarell oil field in the southern Gulf of Mexico, offshore Campeche, was used to test the folded bed method. The model was shown to yield more uniform spatial change of the values of t, compared to the monoclinal bed model that often overestimates the average value of t. The maximum relative deviation of t from the monoclinal bed model reached 22.3 per cent and the maximum absolute deviation of t reached 34.5 m. The key factors that influence the values of t were found to be the bed dip, the dip difference between the top and base of the bed and the deviated angle of the well. The folded bed model yielded fewer changed values of the true bed thickness. 10 refs., 2 tabs., 9 figs.

The threshold of motion is perhaps the most important quantity to determine for understanding rates of bed load transport, however it is a moving target. Decades of research show that it changes in space and in time within a river, and is highly variable among different systems; however, these differences are not mechanistically understood. Recent researchers have proposed that the critical Shields stress is strongly dependent on the local configuration of the sediment bed [Frey and Church, 2011]. Critical Shields stress has been observed to change following sediment-transporting flood events in natural rivers [e.g., Turowski et al., 2011], while small-scale laboratory experiments have produced declining bed load transport rates associated with slow bed compaction [Charru et al., 2004]. However, no direct measurements have been made of the evolving bed structure under bed load transport, so the connection between granular controls and the threshold of motion remains uncertain. A perspective we adopt is that granular effects determine the critical Shields stress, while the fluid supplies a distribution of driving stresses. In order to isolate the granular effect, we undertake laminar bed load transport experiments using plastic beads sheared by a viscous oil in a small, annular flume. The fluid and beads are refractive index matched, and the fluid impregnated with a fluorescing powder. When illuminated with a planar laser sheet, we are able to image slices of the granular bed while also tracking the overlying sediment transport. We present the first results showing how bed load transport influences granular packing, and how changes in packing influence the threshold of motion to feed back on bed load transport rates. This effect may account for much of the variability observed in the threshold of motion in natural streams, and by extension offers a plausible explanation for hysteresis in bed load transport rates observed during floods. Charru, F., H. Mouilleron, and

One of the major challenges in the assessment of and production from turbidite reservoirs is to take full account of thin and medium-bedded turbidites (succession, they can go unnoticed by conventional analysis and so negatively impact on reserve estimation, particularly in fields producing from prolific thick-bedded turbidite reservoirs. Field development plans often take little note of such thin beds, which are therefore bypassed by mainstream production. In fact, the trapped and bypassed fluids can be vital where maximising field value and optimising production are key business drivers. We have studied in detail, a succession of thin-bedded turbidites associated with thicker-bedded reservoir facies in the North Brae Field, UKCS, using a combination of conventional logs and cores to assess the significance of thin-bedded turbidites in computing hydrocarbon pore thickness (HPT). This quantity, being an indirect measure of thickness, is critical for an accurate estimation of original-oil-in-place (OOIP). By using a combination of conventional and unconventional logging analysis techniques, we obtain three different results for the reservoir intervals studied. These results include estimated net sand thickness, average sand thickness, and their distribution trend within a 3D structural grid. The net sand thickness varies from 205 to 380 ft, and HPT ranges from 21.53 to 39.90 ft. We observe that an integrated approach (neutron-density cross plots conditioned to cores) to HPT quantification reduces the associated uncertainties significantly, resulting in estimation of 96% of actual HPT. Further work will focus on assessing the 3D dynamic connectivity of the low-pay sands with the surrounding thick-bedded turbidite facies.

Full Text Available Various cross-sectional and longitudinal studies have suggested that synthetic bedding is associated with asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema while feather bedding seems to be protective. Synthetic bedding items have higher house dust mite allergen levels than feather bedding items. This is possibly the mechanism involved although fungal and bacterial proinflammatory compounds and volatile organic compounds may play a role. In this review we present and discuss the epidemiological evidence and suggest possible mechanisms. Primary intervention studies are required to show whether feather bedding is protective for the development of childhood asthma and allergic diseases while secondary intervention studies are required to potentially reduce symptoms and medication use in subjects with established disease.

An experimental study on incipient motion of gravel and coal beds under unidirectional steady-uniform ﬂow is presented. Experiments were carried out in a ﬂume with various sizes of gravel and coal samples. The critical bed shear stresses for the experimental runs determined using side-wall correction show considerable disagreement with the standard curves. The characteristic parameters affecting the incipient motion of particles in rough-turbulent regime, identiﬁed based on physical reasoning and dimensional analysis, are the Shields parameter, particle Froude number, non-dimensional particle diameter and non-dimensional ﬂow depth. Equations of critical bed shear stress for the initial movement of gravel and coal beds were obtained using experimental data. The method of application of critical bed shear stress equations is also mentioned.

Recently there has been a resurgence of bed bugs in all facets of our society. Bed bugs have even been found in schools, causing unnecessary exclusion of students and unfounded hysteria. School nurses are again called upon to be front-line sources of information to quell the hysteria and confusion related to this unsavory condition. By arming themselves with the best evidence regarding proper identification of bed bugs and their bites and information about integrated prevention measures to control transmission of infestations, school nurses can contribute to the control and management of bed bugs and aid in the overall battle against this "new and improved" invasion of the bed bugs.

This book is a step-by-step, practical tutorial with a simple approach to help you build RESTful web applications and services on the .NET framework quickly and efficiently.This book is for ASP.NET web developers who want to explore REST-based services with C# 5. This book contains many real-world code examples with explanations whenever necessary. Some experience with C# and ASP.NET 4 is expected.

Dietary potassium and protein intakes predict net endogenous acid production in humans. Intracellular buffers, including exchangeable bone mineral, play a crucial role in balancing chronic acid-base perturbations in the body; subsequently, chronic acid loads can potentially contribute to bone loss. Bone is lost during space flight, and a dietary countermeasure would be desirable for many reasons. We studied the ability of diet protein and potassium to predict levels of bone resorption markers in males and females. Identical twin pairs (8 M, 7 F) were assigned to 2 groups: bed rest (sedentary, SED) or bed rest with supine treadmill exercise in a lower body negative pressure chamber (EX). Diet was controlled for 3 d before and 30 d of bed rest (BR). Urinary Ca, N-telopeptide (NTX), and pyridinium crosslinks (PYD) were measured before and on days 5, 12, 19, and 26 of BR. Data were analyzed by Pearson correlation (Pdietary animal protein/potassium intake was not correlated with NTX before BR for males or females, but they were positively correlated in both groups of males during bed rest. Dietary animal protein/potassium and urine Ca were correlated before and during bed rest for the males, and only during bed rest for the females. Conversely, the ratio of dietary vegetable protein/potassium intake was negatively correlated with urinary calcium during bed rest for the females, but there was no relationship between vegetable protein/potassium intake and bone markers for the males. These data suggest that the ratio of animal protein/potassium intake may affect bone, particularly in bed rest subjects. These data show that the type of protein and gender may be additional factors that modulate the effect of diet on bone metabolism during bed rest. Altering this ratio may help prevent bone loss on Earth and during space flight.

Dietary potassium and protein intakes predict net endogenous acid production in humans. Intracellular buffers, including exchangeable bone mineral, play a crucial role in balancing chronic acid-base perturbations in the body; subsequently, chronic acid loads can potentially contribute to bone loss. Bone is lost during space flight, and a dietary countermeasure would be desirable for many reasons. We studied the ability of diet protein and potassium to predict levels of bone resorption markers in males and females. Identical twin pairs (8 M, 7 F) were assigned to 2 groups: bed rest (sedentary, SED) or bed rest with supine treadmill exercise in a lower body negative pressure chamber (EX). Diet was controlled for 3 d before and 30 d of bed rest (BR). Urinary Ca, N-telopeptide (NTX), and pyridinium crosslinks (PYD) were measured before and on days 5, 12, 19, and 26 of BR. Data were analyzed by Pearson correlation (P<0.05). The ratio of dietary animal protein/potassium intake was not correlated with NTX before BR for males or females, but they were positively correlated in both groups of males during bed rest. Dietary animal protein/potassium and urine Ca were correlated before and during bed rest for the males, and only during bed rest for the females. Conversely, the ratio of dietary vegetable protein/potassium intake was negatively correlated with urinary calcium during bed rest for the females, but there was no relationship between vegetable protein/potassium intake and bone markers for the males. These data suggest that the ratio of animal protein/potassium intake may affect bone, particularly in bed rest subjects. These data show that the type of protein and gender may be additional factors that modulate the effect of diet on bone metabolism during bed rest. Altering this ratio may help prevent bone loss on Earth and during space flight.

The aim of the work is to figure out the bed load transport processes using direct and surrogate measurement methods for the free flowing reach of the Drau River and its most important tributary Isel River, both large Alpine gravel-bed rivers, situated in the south western part of Austria. There are some techniques for bed load measurements in natural streams; we used collecting moving particles and indirectly determining transport intensity at the study sites. Former measurements in the study reach were performed also using mobile bed load samplers and fixed bed load samplers. Individually they all are adequate bed load measurement instruments - used in combination they are complementing one another, whereas each applied separately leads to specific deficits. The investigation payed special attention on results out of the geophone installations, whereas steel plate vibrations (the plates are mounted on top of concrete structures even with the river bed surface) caused by bed load particles with a diameter larger than about 20 mm are inducing a signal into the geophones. The signal above a defined threshold voltage than is recorded in a computer system as the sum of impacts during one minute intervals. The spatio-temporal distribution of the transported bed load material, its amount and the transport processes itself could be figured out for the first time out of continuous data collection since 2006 for large alpine gravel-bed rivers. Before building up the gauging stations there were no continuous recordings of bed load transport processes in large alpine rivers over their entire cross section, hence the investigation promises a better process understanding and the possibility to determine bed load transport rates and a rough approximation of the grain size distributions of the transported bed load material under different flow conditions. A relation between detected geophone records, the flow discharge and direct bed load sampling methods (Large Helley Smith

Bed load transport is determined by the effective part of the total shear stress subtracting the form drag that arises from bed topography. Wang et al. (2004) quantified the overall topographic roughness of the channel bed with the parameter Sp and claimed that the increasing Sp corresponds with increasing flow resistance and decreasing bed load transport rate due to increasing form drag and decreasing skin friction. However, the flume experiments for non-uniform sediment transport on steep slope at the University of Arizona show opposite results that bed load transport increases with Sp. We investigate the physical reason of the contrasting results for the full understanding of the different regimes between bed load transport and bed topography. We develop the energy conveyance equation for water flow and bed load transport and apply it to the development of the equilibrium relation between bed load transport and energy dissipation due to the form drag. The energy theory for bed load transport shows that since our flume experiments achieved the equilibrium transport state with water and sediment circulating supplying, the bed topography Sp is determined by the flow and sediment grain size, and the bed load transport is positively related to the energy dissipation rate which is thus positively related to Sp. However, in the field experiment of Wang et al. (2004), at first, the referenced Sp is determined by the most recent significant flood whereas the bed load transport is always below the transport capacity with insufficient sediment supply. After one-time sediment feed, the bed load transport rapidly varies from ephemeral full capacity state to sediment starving state. In this process, the removal of relative fine sediment results in the rapid increment of Sp from the instant equilibrium state to the referenced Sp whereas the coarsen bed leads to decrement of bed load transport. Eventually, the sediment starving state results in the increasing Sp and decreasing

Significant advantages in specific mechanical properties, when compared to conventional aluminum (Al) alloys, make aluminum-lithium (Al-Li) alloys attractive candidate materials for use in cryogenic propellant tanks and dry bay structures. However, the cost of Al-Li alloys is typically five times that of 2219 aluminum. If conventional fabrication processes are employed to fabricate launch vehicle structure, the material costs will restrict their utilization. In order to fully exploit the potential cost and performance benefits of Al-Li alloys, it is necessary that near-net manufacturing methods be developed to off-set or reduce raw material costs. Near-net forging is an advanced manufacturing method that uses elevated temperature metal movement (forging) to fabricate a single piece, near-net shape, structure. This process is termed 'near-net' because only a minimal amount of post-forge machining is required. The near-net forging process was developed to reduce the material scrap rate (buy-to-fly ratio) and fabrication costs associated with conventional manufacturing methods. The goal for the near-net forging process, when mature, is to achieve an overall cost reduction of approximately 50 percent compared with conventional manufacturing options for producing structures fabricated from Al-Li alloys. This NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) sponsored program has been a part of a unique government / industry partnership, coordinated to develop and demonstrate near-net forging technology. The objective of this program was to demonstrate scale-up of the near-net forging process. This objective was successfully achieved by fabricating four integrally stiffened, 170- inch diameter by 20-inch tall, Al-Li alloy 2195, Y-ring adapters. Initially, two 2195 Al-Li ingots were converted and back extruded to produce four cylindrical blockers. Conventional ring rolling of the blockers was performed to produce ring preforms, which were then contour ring rolled to produce

CERTS Microgrid concept captures the emerging potential of distributed generation using a system approach. CERTS views generation and associated loads as a subsystem or a 'microgrid'. The sources can operate in parallel to the grid or can operate in island, providing UPS services. The system can disconnect from the utility during large events (i.e. faults, voltage collapses), but may also intentionally disconnect when the quality of power from the grid falls below certain standards. CERTS Microgrid concepts were demonstrated at a full-scale test bed built near Columbus, Ohio and operated by American Electric Power. The testing fully confirmed earlier research that had been conducted initially through analytical simulations, then through laboratory emulations, and finally through factory acceptance testing of individual microgrid components. The islanding and resynchronization method met all Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Standard 1547 and power quality requirements. The electrical protection system was able to distinguish between normal and faulted operation. The controls were found to be robust under all conditions, including difficult motor starts and high impedance faults.

The present invention provides a condensate desalting device of a BWR type reactor capable of preventing degradation of ion exchange resins by water containing oxidative materials such as hydrogen peroxide thereby keeping reactor water at high purity. Namely, a mixed bed type desalting device comprises a desalting tower for removing impurities in water by ion exchange resins and a regeneration device for cleaning/regenerating the ion exchange resins. Means for loading iron cruds into water is disposed in the desalting tower. With such a constitution, oxidative materials such as hydrogen peroxide react with the iron cruds thereby enabling to suppress oxidative reaction during ion exchange. Since passage or cleaning/regeneration of water is conducted while loading the iron cruds between ion exchange resin particles and on the surface layer of an ion exchange resin layer by using the above-mentioned reaction, degradation of ion exchange performance of the ion exchange resins by hydrogen peroxide can be prevented upon condensate cleaning operation or resin cleaning/regeneration. As a result, degradation of quality of reactor water can be suppressed. (I.S.)

Denitrification beds are promoted to reduce nitrate load in agricultural subsurface drainage water to alleviate the adverse environmental effects associated with nitrate pollution of surface water. In this system, drainage water flows through a trench filled with a carbon media where nitrate is transformed into nitrogen gas under anaerobic conditions. The main objectives of this study were to model a denitrification bed treating drainage water and evaluate its adverse greenhouse gas emissions. Field experiments were conducted at an existing denitrification bed. Evaluations showed very low greenhouse gas emissions (mean N2O emission of 0.12 μg N m(-2) min(-1)) from the denitrification bed surface. Field experiments indicated that nitrate removal rate was described by Michaelis-Menten kinetics with the Michaelis-Menten constant of 7.2 mg N L(-1). We developed a novel denitrification bed model based on the governing equations for water flow and nitrate removal kinetics. The model evaluation statistics showed satisfactory prediction of bed outflow nitrate concentration during subsurface drainage flow. The model can be used to design denitrification beds with efficient nitrate removal which in turn leads to enhanced drainage water quality.

Objective: Bed-sharing is associated with sudden infant death syndrome and accidental suffocation and strangulation in bed. The purpose of this study was to identify risk factors for newborn bed-sharing. Methods: Postpartum mothers from a university maternity service were contacted by phone to complete a survey. Demographic and environmental data were collected; newborn bed-sharing and sleep environment were self-reported. Results: A total of 1261 mothers completed surveys; bed-sharing was reported by 79 mothers (6.3%). Multivariate logistic regression identified referral to a nurse (odds ratio [OR] = 10; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 4.5-30) and sleep location “other” than a crib, bassinet, or Pack and Play (OR = 7.1; 95% CI = 1.9-25.9) as factors associated with an increased risk of bed-sharing; formula feeding (OR = 0.4; 95% CI = 0.20-0.77) and crib sleeping (OR = 0.49; 95% CI = 0.26-0.86) reduced this risk. Conclusion: Infants with no identifiable places to sleep, significant health issues, and who are breastfed are more likely to bed-share. Interventional studies should be directed at these factors. PMID:28229101

Full Text Available Peptidyl arginine deiminases, or PADs, convert arginine residues to the non-ribosomally encoded amino acid citrulline in a variety of protein substrates. PAD4 is expressed in granulocytes and is essential for the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs via PAD4-mediated histone citrullination. Citrullination of histones is thought to promote NET formation by inducing chromatin decondensation and facilitating the expulsion of chromosomal DNA that is coated with antimicrobial molecules. Numerous stimuli have been reported to lead to PAD4 activation and NET formation. However, how this signaling process proceeds and how PAD4 becomes activated in cells is largely unknown. Herein, we describe the various stimuli and signaling pathways that have been implicated in PAD4 activation and NET formation, including the role of reactive oxygen species generation. To provide a foundation for the above discussion, we first describe PAD4 structure and function, and how these studies led to the development of PAD-specific inhibitors. A comprehensive survey of the receptors and signaling pathways that regulate PAD4 activation will be important for our understanding of innate immunity, and the identification of signaling intermediates in PAD4 activation may also lead to the generation of pharmaceuticals to target NET-related pathogenesis.

The Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWS NET) provides monitoring and early warning support to decision makers responsible for responding to famine and food insecurity. FEWS NET transforms satellite remote sensing data into rainfall and vegetation information that can be used by these decision makers. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration has recently funded activities to enhance remote sensing inputs to FEWS NET. To elicit Earth observation requirements, a professional review questionnaire was disseminated to FEWS NET expert end-users; it focused upon operational requirements to determine additional useful remote sensing data and, subsequently, to assess whether such data would be beneficial as FEWS NET biophysical supplementary inputs. The review was completed by over 40 experts from around the world. Reviewers were asked to evaluate the relative importance of environmental variables and spatio-temporal requirements for Earth science data products, in particular for rainfall and vegetation products. The results showed that spatio-temporal resolution requirements are complex and need to vary according to place, time, and hazard; that high resolution remote sensing products continue to be in demand; and that rainfall and vegetation products are valued as data that provide actionable food security information.

The Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWS NET) provides monitoring and early warning support to decision makers responsible for responding to famine and food insecurity. FEWS NET transforms satellite remote sensing data into rainfall and vegetation information that can be used by these decision makers. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration has recently funded activities to enhance remote sensing inputs to FEWS NET. To elicit Earth observation requirements, a professional review questionnaire was disseminated to FEWS NET expert end-users: it focused upon operational requirements to determine additional useful remote sensing data and; subsequently, beneficial FEWS NET biophysical supplementary inputs. The review was completed by over 40 experts from around the world, enabling a robust set of professional perspectives to be gathered and analyzed rapidly. Reviewers were asked to evaluate the relative importance of environmental variables and spatio-temporal requirements for Earth science data products, in particular for rainfall and vegetation products. The results showed that spatio-temporal resolution requirements are complex and need to vary according to place, time, and hazard: that high resolution remote sensing products continue to be in demand, and that rainfall and vegetation products were valued as data that provide actionable food security information.

We used sentinel animal enclosures to measure the rate of infestation by the Chagas disease vector, Triatoma infestans, in an urban community of Arequipa, Peru, and to evaluate the effect of deltamethrin-impregnated netting on that rate. Impregnated netting decreased the rate of infestation of sentinel enclosures (rate ratio, 0.23; 95% confidence interval, 0.13-0.38; P < 0.001), controlling for the density of surrounding vector populations and the distance of these to the sentinel enclosures. Most migrant insects were early-stage nymphs, which are less likely to carry the parasitic agent of Chagas disease, Trypanosoma cruzi. Spread of the vector in the city therefore likely precedes spread of the parasite. Netting was particularly effective against adult insects and late-stage nymphs; taking into account population structure, netting decreased the reproductive value of migrant populations from 443.6 to 40.5. Impregnated netting can slow the spread of T. infestans and is a potentially valuable tool in the control of Chagas disease.

Semantic Web applications require robust and accurate annotation tools that are capable of automating the assignment of ontological classes to words in naturally occurring text (ontological annotation). Most current ontologies do not include rich lexical databases and are therefore not easily integrated with word sense disambiguation algorithms that are needed to automate ontological annotation. WordNet provides a potentially ideal solution to this problem as it offers a highly structured lexical conceptual representation that has been extensively used to develop word sense disambiguation algorithms. However, WordNet has not been designed as an ontology, and while it can be easily turned into one, the result of doing this would present users with serious practical limitations due to the great number of concepts (synonym sets) it contains. Moreover, mapping WordNet to an existing ontology may be difficult and requires substantial labor. We propose to overcome these limitations by developing an analytical platform that (1) provides a WordNet-based ontology offering a manageable and yet comprehensive set of concept classes, (2) leverages the lexical richness of WordNet to give an extensive characterization of concept class in terms of lexical instances, and (3) integrates a class recognition algorithm that automates the assignment of concept classes to words in naturally occurring text. The ensuing framework makes available an ontological annotation platform that can be effectively integrated with intelligence analysis systems to facilitate evidence marshaling and sustain the creation and validation of inference models.

Semantic Web applications require robust and accurate annotation tools that are capable of automating the assignment of ontological classes to words in naturally occurring text (ontological annotation). Most current ontologies do not include rich lexical databases and are therefore not easily integrated with word sense disambiguation algorithms that are needed to automate ontological annotation. WordNet provides a potentially ideal solution to this problem as it offers a highly structured lexical conceptual representation that has been extensively used to develop word sense disambiguation algorithms. However, WordNet has not been designed as an ontology, and while it can be easily turned into one, the result of doing this would present users with serious practical limitations due to the great number of concepts (synonym sets) it contains. Moreover, mapping WordNet to an existing ontology may be difficult and requires substantial labor. We propose to overcome these limitations by developing an analytical platform that (1) provides a WordNet-based ontology offering a manageable and yet comprehensive set of concept classes, (2) leverages the lexical richness of WordNet to give an extensive characterization of concept class in terms of lexical instances, and (3) integrates a class recognition algorithm that automates the assignment of concept classes to words in naturally occurring text. The ensuing framework makes available an ontological annotation platform that can be effectively integrated with intelligence analysis systems to facilitate evidence marshaling and sustain the creation and validation of inference models.

The issue of the net charge at insulating oxide interfaces is briefly reviewed with the ambition of dispelling myths of such charges being affected by covalency and related charge density effects. For electrostatic analysis purposes, the net charge at such interfaces is defined by the counting of discrete electrons and core ion charges, and by the definition of the reference polarization of the separate, unperturbed bulk materials. The arguments are illustrated for the case of a thin film of LaAlO3 over SrTiO3 in the absence of free carriers, for which the net charge is exactly 0.5e per interface formula unit, if the polarization response in both materials is referred to zero bulk values. Further consequences of the argument are extracted for structural and chemical alterations of such interfaces, in which internal rearrangements are distinguished from extrinsic alterations (changes of stoichiometry, redox processes), only the latter affecting the interfacial net charge. The arguments are reviewed alongside the proposal of Stengel and Vanderbilt (2009 Phys. Rev. B 80 241103) of using formal polarization values instead of net interfacial charges, based on the interface theorem of Vanderbilt and King-Smith (1993 Phys. Rev. B 48 4442-55). Implications for non-centrosymmetric materials are discussed, as well as for interfaces for which the charge mismatch is an integer number of polarization quanta.

Full Text Available In this paper, we propose Petri net models for processing elements. The processing elements include: a general-purpose processor (GPP, a reconfigurable element (RE, and a hybrid element (combining a GPP with an RE. The models consist of many transitions and places. The model and associated analysis methods provide a promising tool for modeling and performance evaluation of reconfigurable processors. The model is demonstrated by considering a simple example. This paper describes the development of a reconfigurable processor; the developed system is based on the Petri net concept. Petri nets are becoming suitable as a formal model for hardware system design. Designers can use Petri net as a modeling language to perform high level analysis of complex processors designs processing chips. The simulation does with PIPEv4.1 simulator. The simulation results show that Petri net state spaces are bounded and safe and have not deadlock and the average of number tokens in first token is 0.9901 seconds. In these models, there are only 5% errors; also the analysis time in these models is 0.016 seconds.

This paper briefly introduces the development of vibrating fluidized bed at home and abroad,elaborates the vibration properties of vibrating fluidized bed.the fluidizing velocity and pressure drop of the bed layer,it also deduces the non-steady state drying dynamic equations of vibrating fluidized bed,analyzes main factors which influence the drying rate and inquires into drying rules of fixed bed and vibrating fluidized bed.

We observed that water drops placed on horizontal beds of fine molybdenite particles move freely over the bed surface for about 1 second. The drops collect an irregular coating of unevenly distributed particles as they bounce and roll. We manipulated the distance that the drops travel, and hence the area of the droplet surface coated with particles, by varying the water surface tension and the kinetic energy of the initial droplet impact on the bed surface. Our results highlight the role of contact angle hysteresis in particle encapsulation of liquid drops.

Partial gasification processes have been presented as possibilities for future power production. In the processes, the solid materials removed from a gasifier (i.e. fly ash and bed material) contain unburnt fuel and the fuel conversion is increased by burning this gasification residue either in an atmospheric or a pressurised fluidised-bed. In this project, which is a part of European JOULE 2 EXTENSION research programme, the main research objectives are the behaviour of calcium and sulphur compounds in solids and the emissions of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides (NO{sub x} and N{sub 2}O) in pressurised fluidised-bed combustion of gasification residues. (author)

A particle sub-model describing the bed characteristics of a bubbling fluidised bed is presented.Atomisation air,applied at high pressures via a nozzle positioned above the bed for s pray formation,is incorporated in the model since its presence has a profound influence on the bed characteristics,though the spray itself is not yet considered.A particle sub-model is developed using well-known empirical relations for particle drag force,bubble growth and velocity and particle distribution above the fluidised-bed surface.Simple but effective assumptions and abstractions were made concerning bubble distribution,particle ejection at the bed surface and the behaviour of atomisation air flow upon impacting the surface of a bubbling fluidised bed.The model was shown to be capable of predicting the fluidised bed characteristics in terms of bed heights,voidage distributions and solids volume fractions with good accuracy in less than 5 min of calculation time on a regular desktop PC.It is therefore suitable for incorporation into general process control models aimed at dynamic control for process efficiency and product quality in top-spray fluidised bed coating processes.

Surrogate technologies to monitor bed load discharge have been developed to supplement and ultimately take over traditional direct methods. Our research deals with passive acoustic monitoring of bed load flux using a hydrophone continuously deployed near a river bed. This passive acoustic technology senses any acoustic waves propagated in the river environment and particularly the sound due to interparticle collisions emitted during bed load movement. A data set has been acquired in the large Alpine gravel-bedded Drau River. Analysis of the short-term frequency response of acoustic signals allows us to determine the origin of recorded noises and to consider their frequency variations. Results are compared with ancillary field data of water depth and bed load transport inferred from the signals of a geophone array. Hydrophone and geophone signals are well correlated. Thanks to the large network of deployed geophones, analysis of the spatial resolution of hydrophone measurements shows that the sensor is sensitive to bed load motion not only locally but over distances of 5-10 m (10-20% of river width). Our results are promising in terms of the potential use of hydrophones for monitoring bed load transport in large gravel bed rivers: acoustic signals represent a large river bed area, rather than being local; hydrophones can be installed in large floods; they can be deployed at a low cost and provide continuous monitoring at high temporal resolution.

In this study I introduce BioFrameNet, an extension of the Berkeley FrameNet lexical database to the domain of molecular biology. I examine the syntactic and semantic combinatorial possibilities exhibited in the lexical items used in this domain in order to get a better understanding of the grammatical properties of the language used in scientific…

Net form net blotch (NFNB) caused by the necrotrophic fungal pathogen Pyrenophora teres f. teres (Ptt) is a destructive foliar disease of barley with the potential to cause significant yield loss in major production regions throughout the world. Characterization of diverse genetic resistances to thi...

Top-selling MVC book from a top team at Microsoft—now fully updated!. ASP.NET MVC 2.0 is now available and shipping with Visual Studio 2010 and .NET 4. A new update to Microsoft's Model-View-Controller technologies, MVC 2.0 enables developers to build dynamic, data-driven Web sites. This in-depth book shows you step-by-step how to use MVC 2.0. You'll learn both the theory behind MVC 2.0, as well as walk through practical tutorials, where you'll create a real-world application. Topics include transitioning from ASP.NET development, as well as an overview of related tools and technologies, inclu

This chapter focuses on the methods used to estimate net energy savings in evaluation, measurement, and verification (EM&V) studies for energy efficiency (EE) programs. The chapter provides a definition of net savings, which remains an unsettled topic both within the EE evaluation community and across the broader public policy evaluation community, particularly in the context of attribution of savings to particular program. The chapter differs from the measure-specific Uniform Methods Project (UMP) chapters in both its approach and work product. Unlike other UMP resources that provide recommended protocols for determining gross energy savings, this chapter describes and compares the current industry practices for determining net energy savings, but does not prescribe particular methods.

Full Text Available Oxidation is one of the most employed methods to improve titanium and its alloys properties especially due to medical application. This process like most of the thermochemical treatment processes substantially influences on the characteristic of surface layers and the same on its mechanical and useful properties. Oxide coatings produced during titanium oxidation were examined due to their composition identification. Titanium was oxidized in fluidized bed in temperature range between 500÷700°C. Microstructures of titanium with a visible oxide coating on its surface after thermochemical treatment and changes of grain size in core of titanium samples are described. Moreover Xray phase analysis of obtained oxides coatings was made as well as microhardness measurements of titanium surface layers after oxidation process. Finally, the surfaces of titanium after oxidation in fluidized bed were measured by Auger electron spectroscopy. All research results are used to built numerical model of oxidation process in fluidized. Titanium oxidation process in fluidized bed is very complicated, because changes of parameters are non linear characteristics. This fact and lack of mathematical algorithms describing this process makes modeling properties of titanium elements by traditional numerical methods difficult or even impossible. In this case it is possible to try using artificial neural network. Using neural networks for modeling oxidizing in fluidized bed is caused by several nets' features: non linear character, ability to generalize the results of calculations for data out of training set, no need for mathematical algorithms describing influence changes input parameters on modeling materials properties.

... 12 Banks and Banking 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Statement of net worth. 263.105 Section 263.105... Statement of net worth. (a) General rule. A statement of net worth shall be filed with the application for an award of fees. The statement shall reflect the net worth of the applicant and all affiliates...

To be a successful ASP.NET 4 developer, you need to know how to apply the vast array of new functionality available in the latest release of the .NET 4 Framework and Visual Studio 2010. This book will immerse you in a variety of advanced topics, including architecting different application data tiers, memory caching paradigms, data mining, and search engine optimization. Working through step-by-step exercises using P/LINQ, DLR, MEF, MVC, IronPython, Axum, and Ajax, you will learn a variety of approaches to building each of the key application tiers common to all web solutions. Using a proven t

The Event Coordination Notation (ECNO) allows modelling the behaviour of software on top of structural software models - and to generate program code from these models fully automatically. ECNO distinguishes between the local behaviour of elements (objects) and the global behaviour, which denes t...... work. In this paper, we will show that the ECNO, in turn, can be used for modelling the behaviour of Petri nets in a simple and concise way. What is more, we will show that the ECNO semantics of Place/Transition Systems can easily be extended to so-called signal-event nets....

We present two recently developed state space methods for timed Petri nets. The two methods reconciles state space methods and time concepts based on the introduction of a global clock and associating time stamps to tokens. The first method is based on an equivalence relation on states which makes...... it possible to condense the usually infinite state space of a timed Petri net into a finite condensed state space without loosing analysis power. The second method supports on-the-fly verification of certain safety properties of timed systems. We discuss the application of the two methods in a number...

The general purpose of this research was to use recent satellite-based estimates of deforestation in Brazilian Amazonia to calculate the net flux of carbon associated with deforestation and subsequent regrowth of secondary forests. We have made such a calculation, in the process comparing two estimates of deforestation and two estimates of biomass for the region. Both estimates were based on the RADAMBRASIL survey. They differed in the equations used to convert wood-volumes to total biomass. The net flux of carbon from changes in land use seems to vary from year to year, perhaps by as much as a factor of 4.

We present a restriction of the solos calculus which is stable under reduction and expressive enough to contain an encoding of the pi-calculus. As a consequence, it is shown that equalizing names that are already equal is not required by the encoding of the pi-calculus. In particular, the induced solo diagrams bear an acyclicity property that induces a faithful encoding into differential interaction nets. This gives a (new) proof that differential interaction nets are expressive enough to contain an encoding of the pi-calculus. All this is worked out in the case of finitary (replication free) systems without sum, match nor mismatch.

We analyze a model of quantum nets and show it has a non-Abelian topological order of doubled-Fibonacci type. The ground state has the same topological behavior as that of the corresponding string-net model, but our Hamiltonian can be defined on any lattice, has less complicated interactions, and its excitations are dynamical, not fixed. This Hamiltonian includes terms acting on the spins around a face, around a vertex, and special "Jones-Wenzl" terms that serve to couple long loops together. We provide strong evidence for a gap by exact diagonalization, completing the list of ingredients necessary for topological order.

Microsoft is introducing a large number of changes to the way that the .NET Framework operates. Familiar technologies are being altered, best practices replaced, and developer methodologies adjusted. Many developers find it hard to keep up with the pace of change across .NET's ever-widening array of technologies. You may know what's happening in C#, but how about the Azure cloud? How is that going to affect your work? What are the limitations of the new pLINQ syntax? What you need is a roadmap. A guide to help you see the innovations that matter and to give you a head start on the opportunitie

Full Text Available The bed bug resurgence in North America, Europe, and Australia has elicited interest in investigating the causes of the widespread and increasing infestations and in developing more effective control strategies. In order to extend global perspectives on bed bug management, we reviewed bed bug literature in China by searching five Chinese language electronic databases. We also conducted telephone interviews of 68 pest control firms in two cities during March 2011. In addition, we conducted telephone interviews to 68 pest control companies within two cities in March 2011. Two species of bed bugs (Cimex lectularius L. and Cimex hemipterus (F. are known to occur in China. These were common urban pests before the early1980s. Nationwide “Four-Pest Elimination” campaigns (bed bugs being one of the targeted pests were implemented in China from 1960 to the early 1980s. These campaigns succeeded in the elimination of bed bug infestations in most communities. Commonly used bed bug control methods included applications of hot water, sealing of bed bug harborages, physical removal, and applications of residual insecticides (mainly organophosphate sprays or dusts. Although international and domestic travel has increased rapidly in China over the past decade (2000–2010, there have only been sporadic new infestations reported in recent years. During 1999–2009, all documented bed bug infestations were found in group living facilities (military dormitories, worker dormitories, and prisons, hotels, or trains. One city (Shenzhen city near Hong Kong experienced significantly higher number of bed bug infestations. This city is characterized by a high concentration of migratory factory workers. Current bed bug control practices include educating residents, washing, reducing clutter, putting items under the hot sun in summer, and applying insecticides (pyrethroids or organophosphates. There have not been any studies or reports on bed bug insecticide

A direct nuclear propulsion engine which could be used for a mission to Mars is designed. The main features of this reactor design are high values for I(sub sp) and very efficient cooling. This particle bed reactor consists of 37 cylindrical fuel elements embedded in a cylinder of beryllium which acts as a moderator and reflector. The fuel consists of a packed bed of spherical fissionable fuel particles. Gaseous H2 passes over the fuel bed, removes the heat, and is exhausted out of the rocket. The design was found to be neutronically critical and to have tolerable heating rates. Therefore, this particle bed reactor design is suitable as a propulsion unit for this mission.

To evaluate the effect of no bed rest following ET on the results of an IVF program. Historical cohort-control study. A University-based assisted conception unit. One thousand and nineteen (1019) IVF cycles were performed at our unit from June 1994 to August 1996. The historical control consisted of all the 19,697 IVF cycles reported in the United Kingdom national database from April 1994 to March 1995. No bed rest following ET in our patients. Pregnancy rate (PR) and clinical PR per cycles started and per ET procedure. The clinical PR per ET was significantly higher in our patients than in the national data (30% versus 22.9%), as was the clinical PR per cycle (23.5% versus 18.6%). The implantation rate in our patients was 17.2%. The favorable PR in our patients despite no bed rest following ET suggests the bed rest is not necessary.

The D7 experiment investigated heat removal from a shallow, stratified bed of UO/sub 2/ particulate in sodium. The particle diameters ranged from 0.1 to 1.0 mm, with the largest particles at the bottom. The bed thickness was 74 mm and the average porosity was 41%. The incipient dryout power varied from 0.43 W/g to 0.25 W/g as the sodium subcooling (saturation temperature minus overlying pool temperature) was reduced from 390/sup 0/C to 170/sup 0/C. These powers were only slighlty above the incipient boiling powers. Such low dryout powers are believed due to the interaction of capillary force with bed stratification. With a subccoling of 130/sup 0/C several sudden decreases in the saturation temperature occurred. These are believed due to channel formation, which causes a reduction in the capillary pressure in the bed.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — An all electric aircraft test bed is proposed to provide a dedicated development environment for the rigorous study and advancement of electrically powered aircraft....

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — This data set contains bed topography beneath the Greenland Ice Sheet based on mass conservation derived from airborne radar tracks and satellite radar. The data...

This information is intended to help states, communities, and consumers prevent and control bed bug infestations. These outreach materials are available in Spanish, Chinese, and French; and include action plans based on an IPM approach.

EPA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a joint statement on the public health impacts of bed bugs, which are blood-sucking ectoparasites (external parasites). EPA also has a pesticide registration notice on this topic.

Controlling bed bugs is complex. Using an integrated pest management (IPM) approach incorporates both non-chemical and pesticide methods. Success depends on the extent of the infestation, clutter on site, and resident participation.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — A hybrid electric aircraft simulation system and test bed is proposed to provide a dedicated development environment for the rigorous study and advancement of hybrid...

Pressure fluctuation data measured in a series of fluidized beds with diameters of 0.05, 0.1, 0.29, 0.60 and 1.56 m showed that the maximum amplitude or standard deviation increased with increasing the superficial gas velocity and static bed height for relatively shallow beds and became insensitive to the increase in static bed height in relatively deep beds. The amplitude appeared to be less dependent on the measurement location in the dense bed. Predictions based on bubble passage, bubble eruption at the upper bed surface and bed oscillation all failed to explain all observed trends and underestimated the amplitude of pressure fluctuations, suggesting that the global pressure fluctuations in gas-solids bubbling fluidized beds are the superposition of local pressure variations, bed oscillations and pressure waves generated from the bubble formation in the distributor region, bubble coalescence during their rise and bubble eruption at the upper bed surface.

Full Text Available The mean properties of seven different fibrous materials and the properties of their different bed bulk densities were investigated. The morphology of the surface, size and geometry were measured by optical microscopy. The bed porosity was measured by the weighing method. The experimental bed permeability, in a high range of bulk density, was calculated from the values of the sanitary water pressure drop at a constant temperature of 15°C, since the data followed Darcy's law. The Reynolds number for a fibrous bed was calculated using a relation from the literature. The Reynolds number was less than 1 for all ranges of fluid velocity. Three empirical relations for fibrous bed permeability were used and compared with the experimental data. It was determined that the empirical data depended on the fiber diameter and fraction of solid in the bed. The relative error linearly increased with increasing fiber diameter.

The effects of vibration parameters, operating conditions and material properties on bed voidage were investigated using an optical fiber probe approach in a vibrating fluidized bed with a diameter of 148 mm. Variables studied included frequency (0-282 s{sup -1}), amplitude (0 mm-1 mm), bed height (0.1 m-0.4 m) as well as four kinds of particles (belonging to Geldart's B and D groups). The axial and radial voidage distribution with vibration is compared with that without vibration, which shows vibration can aid in the fluidization behaviors of particles. For a larger vibration amplitude, the vibration seriously affects bed voidage. The vibration energy can damp out for particle layers with increasing the bed height. According to analysis of experimental data, an empirical correlation for predicting bed voidage, giving good agreement with the experimental data and a deviation within {+-}15%, was proposed. 20 refs., 8 figs., 2 tabs.

The dynamic characteristics of a gas-solid fluidized bed with different rod promoters have been investigated in terms of bed expansion and fluctuation, minimum fluidization velocity and distributor-to-bed pressure drop ratio at minimum fluidization velocity. Experimentation based on statistical design has been carried out and model equations using factorial design of experiments have been developed for the above mentioned quantities for a promoted gas-solid fluidized bed. The model equations have been tested with additional experimental data. The system variables include four types of rod promoters of varying blockage volume, bed particles of four sizes and four initial static bed heights. A comparison between the predicted values of the output variables using the proposed model equation with their corresponding experimental ones shows fairly good agreement.

Full Text Available The effects of vibration parameters, operating conditions and material properties on bed voidage were investigated using an optical fiber probe approach in a vibrating fluidized bed with a diameter of 148 mm. Variables studied included frequency (0-282 s-1, amplitude (0 mm-1 mm, bed height (0.1 m-0.4 m as well as four kinds of particles (belonging to Geldart's B and D groups. The axial and radial voidage distribution with vibration is compared with that without vibration, which shows vibration can aid in the fluidization behaviors of particles. For a larger vibration amplitude, the vibration seriously affects bed voidage. The vibration energy can damp out for particle layers with increasing the bed height. According to analysis of experimental data, an empirical correlation for predicting bed voidage, giving good agreement with the experimental data and a deviation within ±15%, was proposed.

New kind of planetary exploration mission for Mars is under development in collaboration between the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), Lavochkin Association (LA), Space Research Institute (IKI) and Institutio Nacional de Tecnica Aerospacial (INTA). The Mars MetNet mission is based on a new semi-hard landing vehicle called MetNet Lander (MNL). The scientific payload of the Mars MetNet Precursor [1] mission is divided into three categories: Atmospheric instruments, Optical devices and Composition and structure devices. Each of the payload instruments will provide significant insights in to the Martian atmospheric behavior. The key technologies of the MetNet Lander have been qualified and the electrical qualification model (EQM) of the payload bay has been built and successfully tested. 1. MetNet Lander The MetNet landing vehicles are using an inflatable entry and descent system instead of rigid heat shields and parachutes as earlier semi-hard landing devices have used. This way the ratio of the payload mass to the overall mass is optimized. The landing impact will burrow the payload container into the Martian soil providing a more favorable thermal environment for the electronics and a suitable orientation of the telescopic boom with external sensors and the radio link antenna. It is planned to deploy several tens of MNLs on the Martian surface operating at least partly at the same time to allow meteorological network science. 2. Scientific Payload The payload of the two MNL precursor models includes the following instruments: Atmospheric instruments: 1. MetBaro Pressure device 2. MetHumi Humidity device 3. MetTemp Temperature sensors Optical devices: 1. PanCam Panoramic 2. MetSIS Solar irradiance sensor with OWLS optical wireless system for data transfer 3. DS Dust sensor The descent processes dynamic properties are monitored by a special 3-axis accelerometer combined with a 3-axis gyrometer. The data will be sent via auxiliary beacon antenna throughout the

Using an irregularly oscillating tray and flume, a series of experiments are completed to evaluate bed-load sediment transport rate under irregular wave- current coexistent fild. Testing conditions include three interaction angles 0°, 45°, 90° and two kinds of median sizes (0.38 and 1.10 mm).The results of transport rate show that the net sediment transport rate can be expressed approximately as the function of the maximum bottom shear stress of waves, mean shear stress of current and the grain size.

The pressure fluctuations in a fluidized bed are a result of the actions of the bubbles. However, the bubbles may be influenced by the air supply system and by the pressure drop of the air distributor. These interactions are treated for low as well as for high velocity beds by means of a simple model of the principal frequency of the pressure fluctuations. The model includes the interaction with the air supply system and describes qualitatively two important bubbling regimes: the single bubbl...

fluidized bed and plasma assisted nanotube synthesis for the growth of boron nitride nanotubes (BNNT). Within this context, we established new...bed and plasma assisted nanotube synthesis for the growth of boron nitride nanotubes (BNNT). Within this context, we established new laboratories to...the path of using plasma assistance to growth BNNT in a manner similar to that of researchers at the Canadian Research Council. With our combined

The approach to model multi-agent systems with hierarchical colored Peal nets is introduced.In a multi-agent system,every agent is modeled with colored Petri net system,and the colored Petri net system of the multi-agent system is a hierarchical colored Petri net system,such that the agents planning deadlock detection and avoidance,can be analyzed with the Petri net system.

Natural gas produced from coal beds (coal-bed methane, CBM) accounts for about 7.5 percent of the total natural gas production in the United States. Along with this gas, water is also brought to the surface. The amount of water produced from most CBM wells is relatively high compared to conventional natural gas wells because coal beds contain many fractures and pores that can contain and transmit large volumes of water. In some areas, coal beds may function as regional or local aquifers and important sources for ground water. The water in coal beds contributes to pressure in the reservoir that keeps methane gas adsorbed to the surface of the coal. This water must be removed by pumping in order to lower the pressure in the reservoir and stimulate desorption of methane from the coal (fi g. 1). Over time, volumes of pumped water typically decrease and the production of gas increases as coal beds near the well bore are dewatered.

Prompted by high refused admission rates, we sought to model demand for our 20 bed paediatric intensive care unit. We analysed activity (admissions) and demand (admissions plus refused admissions). The recommended method for calculating the required number of intensive care beds assumes a Poisson distribution based upon the size of the local catchment population, the incidence of intensive care admission and the average length of stay. We compared it to the Monte Carlo method which would also include supra-regional referrals not otherwise accounted for but which, due to their complexity, tend to have a longer stay than average. For the new method we assigned data from randomly selected emergency admissions to the refused admissions. We then compared occupancy scenarios obtained by random sampling from the data with replacement. There was an increase in demand for intensive care over time. Therefore, in order to provide an up-to-date model, we restricted the final analysis to data from the two most recent years (2327 admissions and 324 refused admissions). The conventional method suggested 27 beds covers 95% of the year. The Monte Carlo method showed 95% compliance with 34 beds, with seasonal variation quantified as 30 beds needed in the summer and 38 in the winter. Both approaches suggest that the high refused admission rate is due to insufficient capacity. The Monte Carlo analysis is based upon the total workload (including supra-regional referrals) and predicts a greater bed requirement than the current recommended approach.

This assessment is based on readily available literature and discusses both Newtonian and non-Newtonian slurries with respect to sliding beds and erosion due to sliding beds. This report does not quantify the size of the sliding beds or erosion rates due to sliding beds, but only assesses if they could be present. This assessment addresses process pipelines in the Pretreatment (PT) facility and the high level waste (HLW) transfer lines leaving the PT facility to the HLW vitrification facility concentrate receipt vessel.

The effect of bed thickness in rectangular fluidized beds is investigated through the CFD–DEM simulations of small-scale systems. Numerical results are compared for bubbling fluidized beds of various bed thicknesses with respect to particle packing, bed expansion, bubble behavior, solids velocities, and particle kinetic energy. Good two-dimensional (2D) flow behavior is observed in the bed having a thickness of up to 20 particle diameters. However, a strong three-dimensional (3D) flow behavior is observed in beds with a thickness of 40 particle diameters, indicating the transition from 2D flow to 3D flow within the range of 20–40 particle diameters. Comparison of velocity profiles near the walls and at the center of the bed shows significant impact of the front and back walls on the flow hydrodynamics of pseudo-2D fluidized beds. Hence, for quantitative comparison with experiments in pseudo-2D columns, the effect of walls has to be accounted for in numerical simulations.

Migrating bed forms strongly influence hydraulics, transport, and habitat in river environments. Their dynamics are exceedingly complex, making it difficult to predict their geometry and their interaction with sediment transport. Acoustic instrumentation now permits high-resolution observations of bed elevation as well as flow velocity. We present a space-time characterization of bed elevation series in laboratory experiments of sand and gravel transport in a large 84 m long, 2.75 m wide flume. We use a simple filtering and thresholding methodology to estimate bed form heights and report that the shape of their probability density function (pdf) remains invariant to discharge for both gravel and sand and has a positive tail slightly thicker than Gaussian. Using a wavelet decomposition, we quantify the presence of a rich multiscale statistical structure and estimate the scale-dependent celerity of migrating bed forms, showing the faster movement of smaller bed forms relative to the larger ones. The nonlinear dynamics of gravel and sand bed forms is also examined, and the predictability time, i.e., the interval over which one can typically forecast the system, is estimated. Our results demonstrate that flow rate as well as bed sediment composition exert a significant influence on the multiscale dynamics and degree of nonlinearity and complexity of bed form evolution.

Full Text Available Circulating fluidized bed boilers are increasingly used in the power generation due to their higher combustion efficiency and lower pollutant emissions. Such boilers require an effective control of the bed temperature, because it influences the boiler combustion efficiency and the rate of harmful emissions. A Particle-Swarm-Optimization-Proportional-Integrative-Derivative (PSO-PID controller for the bed temperature of a circulating fluidized bed boiler is presented. In order to prove the capability of the proposed controller, its performances are compared at different boiler loads with those of a Fuzzy Logic (FL controller. The simulation results demonstrate some advantages of the proposed controller.

The effect of bed thickness in rectangular fluidized beds is investigated through the CFD-DEM simulations of small-scale systems.Numerical results are compared for bubbling fluidized beds of various bed thicknesses with respect to particle packing,bed expansion,bubble behavior,solids velocities,and particle kinetic energy.Good two-dimensional (2D) flow behavior is observed in the bed having a thickness of up to 20 particle diameters.However,a strong three-dimensional (3D) flow behavior is observed in beds with a thickness of 40 particle diameters,indicating the transition from 2D flow to 3D flow within the range of 20-40 particle diameters.Comparison of velocity profiles near the walls and at the center of the bed shows significant impact of the front and back walls on the flow hydrodynamics of pseudo-2D fluidized beds.Hence,for quantitative comparison with experiments in pseudo-2D columns,the effect of wails has to be accounted for in numerical simulations.

Although a significant proportion of patient falls in hospitals occur in the vicinity of the hospital bed, little is known about the contribution of bed height to fall risk. To compare lower extremity joint torques and angles during hospital bed entry and egress at two bed heights. Twelve adults (age > 55) were purposively selected and had variety of strength and mobility limitations. Biomechanical data for this pilot study were collected with three digital video cameras and processed to obtain estimates for joint torques and included angles. At the low bed height, hip torque for bed entry was significantly higher, and hip, knee, and ankle flexion angles were significantly smaller. The absence of significant differences in knee and ankle torques were the result of a compensation strategy that shifts the center of mass forward by flexing the torso during low bed ingress. Torque data from the egress motion were similar, however 50% of participants were unable to rise from the low bed without assistance. Healthcare providers should be aware that low bed heights pose safety risks to the population for which they were designed-elderly persons at high risk for falling.

Multi-nets promise an improved performance over monolithic neural networks by virtue of their distributed implementation. This potential lacks popularity as, without precautions, the learning rate has to drop considerably to eliminate the occurrence of unlearning. This paper introduces extensions of

BioNet v2 is a peer-to-peer middleware that enables digital communication devices to talk to each other. It provides a software development framework, standardized application, network-transparent device integration services, a flexible messaging model, and network communications for distributed applications. BioNet is an implementation of the Constellation Program Command, Control, Communications and Information (C3I) Interoperability specification, given in CxP 70022-01. The system architecture provides the necessary infrastructure for the integration of heterogeneous wired and wireless sensing and control devices into a unified data system with a standardized application interface, providing plug-and-play operation for hardware and software systems. BioNet v2 features a naming schema for mobility and coarse-grained localization information, data normalization within a network-transparent device driver framework, enabling of network communications to non-IP devices, and fine-grained application control of data subscription band width usage. BioNet directly integrates Disruption Tolerant Networking (DTN) as a communications technology, enabling networked communications with assets that are only intermittently connected including orbiting relay satellites and planetary rover vehicles.

Let $\\mathcal{B}$ be a conformal net. We give the notion of a proper action of a finite hypergroup acting by vacuum preserving unital completely positive (so-called stochastic) maps, which generalizes the proper actions of finite groups. Taking fixed points under such an action gives a finite index subnet $\\mathcal{B}^K$ of $\\mathcal{B}$, which generalizes the $G$-orbifold. Conversely, we show that if $\\mathcal{A}\\subset \\mathcal{B}$ is a finite inclusion of conformal nets, then $\\mathcal{A}$ is a generalized orbifold $\\mathcal{A}=\\mathcal{B}^K$ of the conformal net $\\mathcal{B}$ by a unique finite hypergroup $K$. There is a Galois correspondence between intermediate nets $\\mathcal{B}^K\\subset \\mathcal{A} \\subset \\mathcal{B}$ and subhypergroups $L\\subset K$ given by $\\mathcal{A}=\\mathcal{B}^L$. In this case, the fixed point of $\\mathcal{B}^K\\subset \\mathcal{A}$ is the generalized orbifold by the hypergroup of double cosets $L\\backslash K/ L$. If $\\mathcal{A}\\subset \\mathcal{B}$ is an finite index inclusion of...

with the capability of distributed communication among nets. Organized in a three-layer goal management, change management, and component control architecture this allows for self-management in distributed systems. We validate the approach through the Flamenco/CPN middleware that allows for self-management of service...

Programming C#, the top-selling book on Microsoft's high-performance C# programming language, is now in its fourth edition. Aimed at experienced programmers and web developers, this comprehensive guide focuses on the features and programming patterns that are unique to C#, and fundamental to the programming of web services and web applications on Microsoft's .NET platform.

In this paper we give a short introduction to Milner's Calculus for Communicating Systems - a paradigm for concurrent computation. We put special emphasis on the basic concepts and tools from the underlying "algebraic approach", and their relationship to the approach to concurrency within net...

The relationship among net primary productivity (NPP), hydroperiod, and fertility in forested wetlands is poorly understood (Burke and others 1999), particularly with respect to belowground NPP (Megonigal and others 1997). Although some researchers have studied aboveground and belowground primary production in depressional, forested wetland systems, e.g., Day and...

The functions of the AdaNET Prototype Library of Reusable Software Parts is described. Adopted from the Navy Research Laboratory's Reusability Guidebook (V.5.0), this is a working document, customized for use the the AdaNET Project. Within this document, the term part is used to denote the smallest unit controlled by a library and retrievable from it. A part may have several constituents, which may not be individually tracked. Presented are the types of parts which may be stored in the library and the relationships among those parts; a concept of trust indicators which provide measures of confidence that a user of a previously developed part may reasonably apply to a part for a new application; search and retrieval, configuration management, and communications among those who interact with the AdaNET Prototype Library; and the AdaNET Prototype, described from the perspective of its three major users: the part reuser and retriever, the part submitter, and the librarian and/or administrator.

In order to evaluate the operation of high performance routers, CERN has developed the NetBench software to run benchmarking tests by injecting various traffic patterns and observing the network devices behaviour in real-time. The tool features a modular design with a Python based console used to inject traffic and collect the results in a database, and a web user

This paper presents Petri net software tool P3 that is developed for training purposes of the Architecture and organization of computers (AOC) course. The P3 has the following features: graphical modeling interface, interactive simulation by single and parallel (with previous conflict resolution) transition firing, two well-known Petri net…

This document describes the aims and methodology of a three year project (commenced in 2012) entitled Net Escapement of Antarctic krill in Trawls (NEAT). The study will include a morphology based mathematical modeling (FISHSELECT) of different sex and maturity groups of Antarctic krill (Euphausia...

Byron Breedlove reads his essay Musings on Sketches, Artists, and Mosquito Nets about the art of James Whistler and the transmission of vector borne diseases. Created: 9/23/2014 by National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID). Date Released: 10/20/2014.

. Efficient retrieval can be carried out in the latent representation. We work both on public benchmarks and digital media content provided by Issuu, an on-line publishing platform. This article also comes with a newly developed deep belief nets toolbox for topic modeling tailored towards performance...

We present the notion of regular event structures and conjecture that they correspond exactly to finite 1-safe Petri nets. We show that the conjecture holds for the conflict-free case. Even in this restricted setting, the proof is non-trivial and involves a natural subclass of regular event...

In this paper we give a short introduction to Milner's Calculus for Communicating Systems - a paradigm for concurrent computation. We put special emphasis on the basic concepts and tools from the underlying "algebraic approach", and their relationship to the approach to concurrency within net...

textabstractThe Elastic Net Algorithm (ENA) for solving the Traveling Salesman Problem is analyzed applying statistical mechanics. Using some general properties of the free energy function of stochastic Hopfield Neural Networks, we argue why Simic's derivation of the ENA from a Hopfield network

Replicates, using diverse quotations grouped under four metaphors (dreamcatcher, gatekeeper, spider web, safety net) representing the dissonance of the reading/writing processes as they might be experienced by basic skills readers. Questions the relationship of basic skills to its students; implements D. Bartholomae's recommendations to reform of…

A class of nets in constructive (in A.A.Markov's sense) topological space for which the convergence is equivalent to convergence of all subsequences, is described. B.A.Kushner's theorem about coincidence of strong and weak constructive variants of Riemann's integrability, is obtained as corollary.

Full Text Available Squid net is one of alternatives to replace trawl net in Pati regency. The purposes of the research are 1 to determine the influence factors, 2 to analyze the return to scale, 3 to analyze cost and return.The research location in Juwana Subdistrict particularly Bakaran Kulon, Dukutalit, Bajomulyo and Bendar Villages. The research conducted on October 2015 to June 2016. The number of final samples was 36, while the formulation of management strategies used 15 samples by snowball sampling. Data analysis techniques used 1 Cobb Douglas production function, 2 revenue-cost ratio analysis. The results of the research are 1 significant inputs for production factor are long trip, Solar fuel, the number of crew and lights. 2 the return to scale of squid net bussiness in Juwana subdistrict Pati regency is -0.231 means decreasing to scale. 3 the R/C ratio of scenario II more profitable for squid net crews than scenario I.

Perennial herbaceous plants such as switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) are being evaluated as cellulosic bioenergy crops. Two major concerns have been the net energy efficiency and economic feasibility of switchgrass and similar crops. All previous energy analyses have been based on data from research plots (biomass energy crop in field trials of 3-9 ha (1 ha = 10,000 m2) on marginal cropland on 10 farms across a wide precipitation and temperature gradient in the midcontinental U.S. to determine net energy and economic costs based on known farm inputs and harvested yields. In this report, we summarize the agricultural energy input costs, biomass yield, estimated ethanol output, greenhouse gas emissions, and net energy results. Annual biomass yields of established fields averaged 5.2-11.1 Mg x ha(-1) with a resulting average estimated net energy yield (NEY) of 60 GJ x ha(-1) x y(-1). Switchgrass produced 540% more renewable than nonrenewable energy consumed. Switchgrass monocultures managed for high yield produced 93% more biomass yield and an equivalent estimated NEY than previous estimates from human-made prairies that received low agricultural inputs. Estimated average greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from cellulosic ethanol derived from switchgrass were 94% lower than estimated GHG from gasoline. This is a baseline study that represents the genetic material and agronomic technology available for switchgrass production in 2000 and 2001, when the fields were planted. Improved genetics and agronomics may further enhance energy sustainability and biofuel yield of switchgrass.

After more than 6 years of operations, the HiSeasNet satellite communications network continues to provide continuous internet connectivity for oceanographic research ships and platforms throughout the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. With additional bandwidth and ships brought online in 2008, HiSeasNet now supports 15 ships at sea as well as a seismic observatory on South Georgia Island in the Southern Ocean. Employing a variety of networking technologies, HiSeasNet has allowed scientists to conduct videoconference outreach programs, maintain limited long-term real-time data collection, connect campus phones to shipboard phones through the ship's PBX using Voice over IP (VoIP) protocols, and direct multi-ship research from shore and other ships. Standard Internet protocols available include FTP, HTTPS, and SSH. As there are few UNOLS ships that are not HiSeasNet capable, network operations now focus on providing bandwidth flexibility (including short-term increases), operator training, and increased science and operations community resources. With still plenty of unused ship-to-shore bandwidth, online information, and trained technicians, there are many opportunities for science programs to send near-real-time data to shore for both single- cruise and more permanent deployments of equipment. Current real-time data feeds are collected on some ships and transported through NSF Real-time Observatory and Data management Network (ROADNet) Points-of-Presence units.

The principal causative objectives of BEST were to consolidate the 9-1-1 and emergency response services into an Integrated Incident Management Center (I2MC) and to establish an 'Interoperability framework' based on SensorNet protocols to allow additional components to be added to the I2MC over time.

NET-VISA is a probabilistic system developed for seismic network processing of data measured on the International Monitoring System (IMS) of the Comprehensive nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO). NET-VISA is composed of a Generative Model (GM) and an Inference Algorithm (IA). The GM is an explicit mathematical description of the relationships between various factors in seismic network analysis. Some of the relationships inside the GM are deterministic and some are statistical. Statistical relationships are described by probability distributions, the exact parameters of which (such as mean and standard deviation) are found by training NET-VISA using recent data. The IA uses the GM to evaluate the probability of various events and associations, searching for the seismic bulletin which has the highest overall probability and is consistent with a given set of measured arrivals. An Interactive Model Visualization tool (IMV) has been developed which makes 'peeking into' the GM simple and intuitive through a web-based interfaced. For example, it is now possible to access the probability distributions for attributes of events and arrivals such as the detection rate for each station for each of 14 phases. It also clarifies the assumptions and prior knowledge that are incorporated into NET-VISA's event determination. When NET-VISA is retrained, the IMV will be a visual tool for quality control both as a means of testing that the training has been accomplished correctly and that the IMS network has not changed unexpectedly. A preview of the IMV will be shown at this poster presentation. Homepage for the IMV IMV shows current model file and reference image.

We investigated the potential of carbon dioxide (CO2) fumigation as a method for controlling bed bugs, Cimex lectularius L. The effect of bed bug developmental stage, temperature, and CO2 concentration on the minimum time to kill 100% of bed bugs was determined. The minimum CO2 concentration lethal to all bed bug stages was approximately 30% with 24 h exposure time at 25 degrees C. The minimum fumigation time required to kill 100% of eggs using 100% CO2 at 20, 25, and 30 degrees C were 3, 7, and 8 h, respectively; the minimum fumigation time to kill 100% of adult males/nymphs were 8, 13, and 14 h, respectively. The minimum time to kill 100% of adult males/nymphs using 50 and 70% CO2 at 25 degrees C were 18 and 16 h, respectively. We found that eggs were not completely killed after 24 h fumigation when the CO2 concentration was lower than 80%. Thus, bed bug eggs were more susceptible to 100% CO2 fumigation than nymphs and adult males but more tolerant than nymphs and adult males with lower CO2 concentration (50-80%). There were no significant differences among nymphs, adult males, and adult females in their susceptibility to 100% CO2 fumigation. A 24 h fumigation in sealed 158 liter (42 gallon) heavy duty garbage bags filled 90% full with fabric materials and/or boxes and 1,350 g dry ice per bag was sufficient to kill all stages of bed bugs hidden in the materials at room temperature (23-24 degrees C). Sealed heavy duty garbage bags maintained > or = 94% CO2 for at least 24 h. Custom-made double zipper plastic bags (122 x 183 cm) were also used to evaluate the effectiveness of CO2 fumigation for controlling bed bugs. Each bag was filled with fabric and boxes to 50-90% full. Bed bugs were hidden in various locations of each bag. CO2 was introduced into the bags through a CO2 cylinder. CO2 fumigation lasting 24-48 h was sufficient to kill all stages of bed bugs at room temperature, depending on the quantity of materials placed in each bag and whether CO2 was

Bed bugs, Cimex lectularius L., are now considered a serious urban pest in the United States. Because they are small and difficult to find, there has been strong interest in developing and using monitoring tools to detect bed bugs and evaluate the results of bed bug control efforts. Several bed bug monitoring devices were developed recently, but their effectiveness is unknown. We comparatively evaluated three active monitors that contain attractants: CDC3000, NightWatch, and a home-made dry ice trap. The Climbup Insect Interceptor, a passive monitor (without attractants), was used for estimating the bed bug numbers before and after placing active monitors. The results of the Interceptors also were compared with the results of the active monitors. In occupied apartments, the relative effectiveness of the active monitors was: dry ice trap > CDC3000 > NightWatch. In lightly infested apartments, the Interceptor (operated for 7 d) trapped similar number of bed bugs as the dry ice trap (operated for 1 d) and trapped more bed bugs than CDC3000 and NightWatch (operated for 1 d). The Interceptor was also more effective than visual inspections in detecting the presence of small numbers of bed bugs. CDC3000 and the dry ice trap operated for 1 d were equally as effective as the visual inspections for detecting very low level of infestations, whereas 1-d deployment of NightWatch detected significantly lower number of infestations compared with visual inspections. NightWatch was designed to be able to operate for several consecutive nights. When operated for four nights, NightWatch trapped similar number of bed bugs as the Interceptors operated for 10 d after deployment of NightWatch. We conclude these monitors are effective tools in detecting early bed bug infestations and evaluating the results of bed bug control programs.

The difference in the removal efficiencies of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in planted and unplanted sludge drying bed was investigated. Pilot-scale sludge drying bed and reed bed had the same size of 3.0 m x 1.0 m x 1.3 m (L x W x H), and the bed height consisted of a 65 cm media layer and a 65 cm super height. Both beds had a ventilation pipe which was mounted on the drainage pipes. The experiment lasted for three years, and the first two years was the sludge loading period, and the third year was the natural stabilization period. In the first two years, a total thickness of 8.4 m of sludge was loaded and the average sludge loading rate was 41.3 kg x (m2 x a)(-1). After the three-year stabilization, the contents of the sixteen PAHs decreased with time in both the sludge drying bed and the reed bed. The total PAHs contents in the surface, middle and bottom sludge layers in the sludge drying bed were 4.161, 3.543 and 3.118 mg x kg(-1) (DW), corresponding to 26.91%, 37.77% and 45.23% of removal; and the values in the reed bed were 2.722, 1.648 and 1.218 mg x kg(-1) (DW), corresponding to 52.18%, 71.05% and 78.60% of removal. The average PAHs removal in the reed bed was 29.86% higher than that in the sludge drying bed. In the stabilized sludge, the removal of low-molecular-weight PAHs predominated. The results suggested that reed played a positive role in the removal of PAHs.

Cyber nets are also known as self-modifying nets.Though proposed and defined some 20 years ago.They have never been under thorough study ever since.The reason for this is simple:the nonlinear nature of such nets keeps them away from applications of well developed methods known to the whole Petri Net Society in the world.This paper attempts to make a start of studying cyber nets in depth by proposing a way to defing and to verify S-invariants and T-invariants in such nets.These invariants reflect important dynamic properties of cyber nets.Invariants in cyber nets play a role similar to loop invariants proposed and studied by E.W.Dijkstra and D.Gries when cyber nets are used for program specification.

A Petri net controlled grammar is a Petri net with respect to a context-free grammar where the successful derivations of the grammar can be simulated using the occurrence sequences of the net. In this paper, we introduce a new variant of Petri net controlled grammars, called a place-labeled Petri net controlled grammar, which is a context-free grammar equipped with a Petri net and a function which maps places of the net to productions of the grammar. The language consists of all terminal strings that can be obtained by parallelly applying multisets of the rules which are the images of the sets of the input places of transitions in a successful occurrence sequence of the Petri net. We study the effect of the different labeling strategies to the computational power and establish lower and upper bounds for the generative capacity of place-labeled Petri net controlled grammars.

The next generation multi-cubic-kilometre water Cherenkov neutrino telescope will be build in the Mediterranean Sea. This telescope, called KM3NeT, is currently entering a first construction phase. The KM3NeT research infrastructure will comprise 690 so-called Detection Units in its final design which will be anchored to the sea bed and held upright by submerged floats. The positions of these Detection Units, several hundred metres in length, and their attached Optical Modules for the detection of Cherenkov light have to be monitored continously to provide the telescope with its desired pointing precision. A standard way to do this is the utilisation of an acoustic positioning system using emitters at fixed positions and receivers distributed along the Detection Units. The KM3NeT neutrino telescope comprises a custom-made acoustic positioning system with newly designed emitters attached to the anchors of the Detection Units and custom-designed receivers attached to the Detection Units. This article describes ...

The next generation multi-cubic-kilometre water Cherenkov neutrino telescope will be build in the Mediterranean Sea. This telescope, called KM3NeT, is currently entering a first construction phase. The KM3NeT research infrastructure will comprise 690 so-called Detection Units in its final design which will be anchored to the sea bed and held upright by submerged floats. The positions of these Detection Units, several hundred metres in length, and their attached Optical Modules for the detection of Cherenkov light have to be monitored continously to provide the telescope with its desired pointing precision. A standard way to do this is the utilisation of an acoustic positioning system using emitters at fixed positions and receivers distributed along the Detection Units. The KM3NeT neutrino telescope comprises a custom-made acoustic positioning system with newly designed emitters attached to the anchors of the Detection Units and custom-designed receivers attached to the Detection Units. This article describes an approach for a receiver and its performance. The proposed Opto-Acoustical Modules combine the optical sensors for the telescope with the acoustical sensors necessary for the positioning of the module itself. This combination leads to a compact design suited for an easy deployment of the numerous Detection Units. Furthermore, the instrumented volume can be used for scientific analyses such as marine science and acoustic particle detection.

Electro-spinning/netting (ESN) as a cutting-edge technique evokes much interest because of its ability in the one-step preparation of versatile nano-fiber/net (NFN) membranes. Here, a controllable fabrication of polyurethane (PU) NFN membranes with attractive structures, consisting of common electrospun nanofibers and two-dimensional (2D) soap bubble-like structured nano-nets via an ESN process is reported. The unique nanoscaled NFN architecture can be finely controlled by regulating the solution properties and several ESN process parameters. The versatile PU nano-nets comprising interlinked nanowires with ultrathin diameters (5-40 nm) mean that the NFN structured membranes possess several excellent characteristics, such as an extremely large specific surface area, high porosity and large stacking density, which would be particularly useful for applications in ultrafiltration, special protective clothing, ultrasensitive sensors, catalyst support and so on.

One of the main goals of the RHIC Beam Energy Scan (BES) program is to study the QCD phase structure, which includes the search for the QCD critical point, over a wide range of chemical potential. Theoretical calculations predict that fluctuations of conserved quantities, such as baryon number (B), charge (Q), and strangeness (S), are sensitive to the correlation length of the dynamical system. Experimentally, higher moments of multiplicity distributions have been utilized to search for the QCD critical point in heavy-ion collisions. In this paper, we report recent efficiency-corrected cumulants and cumulants ratios of the net- proton, net-kaon, and net-charge multiplicity distributions in Au+Au collisions at 7.7, 11.5, 14.5, 19.6, 27, 39, 62.4, and 200 GeV collected in the years 2010, 2011, and 2014 with STAR at RHIC. The centrality and energy dependence of the cumulants up to the fourth order, as well as their ratios, are presented. Furthermore, the comparisons with baseline calculations (Poisson) and non-c...

In case of a severe accident with loss of coolant and core meltdown a particle bed (debris) can be formed. The removal of decay heat from the debris bed is of prime importance for the bed's long-term coolability to guarantee the integrity of the RPV. In contrast to previous experiments, the focus is on stratified beds. The experiments have pointed out that the bed's coolability is significantly affected.

The Reynolds stress and bed shear stress are important parameters in fluvial hydraulics. Steadynonuniform flow in open channels with streamwise sloping beds having upward seepage through loose beds is theoretically analyzed to estimate the Reynolds stress and bed shear stress. Equations of the Reynolds stress and bed shear stress are developed, assuming a modified logarithmic velocity distribution law due to upward seepage, and using the Reynolds and continuity equations of twodimensional flow in open channels.

Debris flows are mass movements that play an important role in transporting sediment from steep uplands to rivers at lower slopes. As the debris flow moves downstream, it entrains materials such as loose boulders, gravel, sand and mud deposited locally by shorter flows such as slides and rockfalls. To capture the conditions under which debris flows entrain bed sediment, some models use something akin to the Shields' criterion and an excess shear stress of the flow. However, these models typically neglect granular-scale effects in the bed which can modify the conditions under which a debris flow is erosional or depositional. For example, it is well known that repeated shearing causes denser packing in loose dry soils, which undoubtedly changes their resistance to shear. Here, we present laboratory flume experiments showing that the conditions for entrainment by debris flows is significantly dependent on the aging of an erodible bed even for narrowly distributed spherical particles. We investigate this quantitatively using particle tracking measurements to quantify instantaneous erosion rates and the evolving bed structure or "fabric". With progressive experiments we find a signature that emerges in the bed fabric that is correlated with an increasing apparent "fragility" of the bed. Specifically, a system that is originally depositional may become erosional after repeated debris flow events, and an erodible bed becomes increasingly erodible with repeated flows. We hypothesize that related effects of bed aging at the field scale may be partly responsible for the increasing destructiveness of secondary flows of landslides and debris flows.

The control of cell division is critical to organogenesis, but how this control is achieved is not fully understood. We found that mutations in bed-3, encoding a BED Zn-finger domain transcription factor, confer a phenotype where a specific set of cell divisions during vulval organogenesis is lost. Unlike general cell cycle regulators in Caenorhabditis elegans, the function of bed-3 is restricted to specific lineages. Transcriptional reporters suggest that bed-3 is expressed in a limited number of cell types including vulval cells whose divisions are affected in bed-3 mutants. A bed-3 mutation also affects the expression pattern of the cdh-3 cadherin gene in the vulva. The phenotype of bed-3 mutants is similar to the phenotype caused by mutations in cog-1 (Nkx6), a component of a gene regulatory network controlling cell type specific gene expression in the vulval lineage. These results suggest that bed-3 is a key component linking the gene regulatory network controlling cell-type specification to control of cell division during vulval organogenesis.

Thermal energy storage technology is essential because its stores available energy at low cost. Objective of the work is to store the thermal energy in a most efficient method. This work is deal with thermal analysis of fluidized bed and fixed bed latent heat thermal storage (LHTS) system with different encapsulation materials (aluminium, brass and copper). D-Mannitol has been used as phase change material (PCM). Encapsulation material which is in orbicular shape with 4 inch diameter and 2 mm thickness orbicular shaped product is used. Therminol-66 is used as a heat transfer fluid (HTF). Arrangement of encapsulation material is done in two ways namely fluidized bed and fixed bed thermal storage system. Comparison was made between the performance of fixed bed and fluidized bed with different encapsulation material. It is observed that from the economical point of view aluminium in fluidized bed LHTS System has highest efficiency than copper and brass. The thermal energy storage system can be analyzed with fixed bed by varying mass flow rate of oil paves a way to find effective heat energy transfer.

Gasification of biomass is a suitable option for decentralized energy supply based on renewable sources in the range of up to 50 MW fuel input. The paper presents the dual fluidized bed (DFB) steam gasification process, which is applied to generate high quality and nitrogen-free product gas. Essential part of the DFB process is the bed material used in the fluidized reactors, which has significant impact on the product gas quality. By the use of catalytically active bed materials the performance of the overall process is increased, since the bed material favors reactions of the steam gasification. In particular, tar reforming reactions are favored. Within the paper, the pilot plant based on the DFB process with 100kW fuel input at Vienna University of Technology, Austria is presented. Actual investigations with focus on CaO-based bed materials (limestone) as well as with natural olivine as bed material were carried out at the pilot plant. The application of CaO-based bed material shows mainly decreased tar content in the product gas in contrast to experiments with olivine as bed material. The paper presents the results of steam gasification experiments with limestone and olivine, whereby the product gas composition as well as the tar content and the tar composition are outlined.

In this work the performance of different membrane reactor concepts, both fluidized bed and packed bed membrane reactors, have been compared for the reforming of methane for the production of ultra-pure hydrogen. Using detailed theoretical models, the required membrane area to reach a given conversi

In this theoretical work the performance of different membrane reactor concepts, both fluidized bed and packed bed membrane reactors, has been compared for ultra-pure hydrogen production via methane reforming. Using detailed theoretical models, the required membrane area to reach a given conversion

Classic vector control strategies target mosquitoes indoors as the main transmitters of malaria are indoor-biting and -resting mosquitoes. However, the intensive use of insecticide-treated bed-nets (ITNs) and indoor residual spraying have put selective pressure on mosquitoes to adapt in order to obtain human blood meals. Thus, early-evening and outdoor vector activity is becoming an increasing concern. This study assessed the effect of a deltamethrin-treated net (100 mg/m(2)) attached to a one-meter high fence around outdoor cattle enclosures on the number of mosquitoes landing on humans. Mosquitoes were collected from four cattle enclosures: Pen A - with cattle and no net; B - with cattle and protected by an untreated net; C - with cattle and protected by a deltamethrin-treated net; D - no cattle and no net. A total of 3217 culicines and 1017 anophelines were collected, of which 388 were Anopheles gambiae and 629 An. ziemanni. In the absence of cattle nearly 3 times more An. gambiae (p<0.0001) landed on humans. The deltamethrin-treated net significantly reduced (nearly three-fold, p<0.0001) culicine landings inside enclosures. The sporozoite rate of the zoophilic An. ziemanni, known to be a secondary malaria vector, was as high as that of the most competent vector An. gambiae; raising the potential of zoophilic species as secondary malaria vectors. After deployment of the ITNs a deltamethrin persistence of 9 months was observed despite exposure to African weather conditions. The outdoor use of ITNs resulted in a significant reduction of host-seeking culicines inside enclosures. Further studies investigating the effectiveness and spatial repellence of ITNs around other outdoor sites, such as bars and cooking areas, as well as their direct effect on vector-borne disease transmission are needed to evaluate its potential as an appropriate outdoor vector control tool for rural Africa.

Burn therapists routinely are tasked to position the lower extremities of burn patients for pressure ulcer prevention, skin graft protection, donor site ventilation, and edema reduction. We developed two durable and low-maintenance devices that allow effective positioning of the lower extremities. The high-profile and low-profile leg net devices were simple to fabricate and maintain. The frame was assembled using a three-quarter-inch diameter copper pipe and copper fittings (45 degrees, 90 degrees, and tees). A double layer of elasticized tubular netting was pulled over the frame and doubled back for leg support to complete the devices. The devices can be placed on any bed surface. The netting can be exchanged when soiled and the frame can be disinfected between patients using standard techniques. Both devices were used on approximately 250 patients for a total of 1200 treatment days. No incidence of pressure ulcer was observed, and graft take was not adversely affected. The devices have not required repairs or replacement. Medical providers reported they are easy to apply and effectively maintain proper positioning throughout application. Neither device interfered with the application of other positioning devices. Both devices were found to be an effective method of positioning lower extremities to prevent pressure ulcer, minimize graft loss and donor site morbidity, and reduce edema. The devices allowed for proper wound ventilation and protected grafted lower extremities on any bed surface. The devices are simple to fabricate and maintain. Both devices can be effectively used simultaneously with other positioning devices.

Many databases store data in relational format, with different types of entities and information about links between the entities. The field of statistical-relational learning has developed a number of new statistical models for such data. Instead of introducing a new model class, we propose using a standard model class--Bayes nets--in a new way: Join Bayes nets contain nodes that correspond to the descriptive attributes of the database tables, plus Boolean relationship nodes that indicate the presence of a link. Join Bayes nets are class-level models whose random variables describe attributes of generic individuals (e.g., $\\age(\\P)$ rather than $\\age(\\jack)$ where $\\P$ stands for a randomly selected person). As Join Bayes nets are just a special type of Bayes net, their semantics is standard (edges denote direct associations, d-separation implies probabilistic independence etc.), and Bayes net inference algorithms can be used "as is" to answer probabilistic queries involving relations. We present a dynamic p...

The technology and application of the circulating fluidized bed boiler (IHI-FW) are outlined. Circulating fluidized bed boilers have various features as compared with bubbling fluidized bed boilers as follows; a high combustion efficiency, efficient use of limestone for desulfurization, low NOx emission, adaptability to various fuels and capability to cope with load change. The IHI-FW boiler is furthermore featured by water-wall furnace of all-welded structure, water-cooled/steam cooled cyclone, and simple circulating system. The 30 t/h circulating fluidized bed boiler was introduced into the Tsu Works, Omikenshi Co., Ltd., Japan for private power generation. The boiler equipped with a backup heavy oil burner mainly uses semi-anthracite coal, and besides sulfur capture and NOx reduction functions of a bed, a bag filter with a high dust collecting efficiency is installed in an exhaust gas system. The installation period was reduced to 2.5 months, a half of conventional ones, by more assembly in a factory followed by less field works. 7 figs., 2 tabs.

A procedure to model the wear of surfaces exposed to a fluidized bed is formulated. A stochastic methodology adapting the kinetic theory of gases to granular flows is used to develop an impact wear model. This uses a single-particle wear model to account for impact wear from all possible-particle collisions. An adaptation of a single-particle abrasion model to describe the effects of many abrading particles is used to account for abrasive wear. Parameters describing granular flow within the fluidized bed, necessary for evaluation of the wear expressions, are determined by numerical solution of the fluidized bed hydrodynamic equations. Additional parameters, describing the contact between fluidized particles and the wearing surface, are determined by optimization based on wear measurements. The modeling procedure was used to analyze several bubbling and turbulent fluidized bed experiments with single-tube and tube bundle configurations. Quantitative agreement between the measured and predicted wear rates was found, with some exceptions for local wear predictions. This work demonstrates a methodology for wear predictions in fluidized beds.